Rider Of The East
by Cardinal Grief
Summary: Kusanagi Godou never thought he would defeat a goddess and usurp her powers while on an errand for his grandpa. Now he has to learn how to ride... Rewrite in progress.
1. Sòl

So I wrote another story, but this is for Campione! I thought that the universe was incredibly interesting the first time I read the light novels and I thought: "What if Godou wasn't the (hypocritical) pacifist he was in the novels and actually got some training after he became a Campione? So after a little brainstorming, I had the beginning of this chapter. I used the basic premise as in the novels: Godou is returning a tablet that has the ability to steal a god's power, but I altered it a lot. I hope you'll enjoy the first chapter. There will soon be more.

And before you start complaining that I made up certain parts of the goddess's legend, remember that most gods in the Campione have done the same. I just made it so it got interesting when he got his powers and how to use them.

* * *

December 10…

Unlike Japan, the winds of Sweden were excruciatingly cold in the winter. The winds that blew felt like pure ice as it froze him to his core. The snow got in his eyes and forced him to look down in an attempt to shield them from the onslaught of snowflakes, but it did little good as the wind made the snow get in his eyes no matter what.

Kusanagi Godou was not a happy camper. Normally he wouldn't be a camper at all, but his grandfather had asked him to deliver something to the family of his old friend. Apparently the man had passed away recently and before he took his final breath, he had asked Kusanagi Ichirou to return an old artifact. It was an old tablet depicting a large wolf in the sky, hardly a decorative piece, but Ichirou had agreed. The only problem was that the family had been quite greedy in their request. They insisted in selling it off to a collector and wanted the thing sold as soon as possible. That meant getting the tablet to an old mansion in the middle of Sweden's nowhere when the snowstorms were at full force. While Ichirou was quite fit for his old age, especially for someone who has such a reputation among the old widows, he was not fit enough to brave the winter of Scandinavia.

That meant they had few options. They could send it by post, but the mansion didn't have postal service for some absurd reason, meaning they would have to go in person. So either Godou or Shizuka would have to fly all the way to Scandinavia to deliver it. Neither of the Kusanagi men gave even the slightest consideration to sending Shizuka; the twelve year old girl was quite responsible for her age, but who in their right mind would send a girl who wasn't even a teenager on a trip, alone, around the globe? So naturally it fell to Godou to ensure the heirloom was delivered to the rightful owner.

Unfortunately, the greedy bastards who wanted the tablet didn't seem to give a flying fern about who made the delivery as they didn't bother mentioning that there were no trains, buses or taxis that made the trip to the mansion and they couldn't be bothered to pick him up. He actually had to call them several times before they admitted that he would have to make the delivery on foot.

So now he was in the northern parts of Sweden, also known as fell, with a crappy tent and a stone tablet and stuck in a snowstorm. He honestly didn't know how he got into this situation, but obviously somehow, a god somewhere out there wanted to punish him for something he didn't know he did.

_Somewhere…_

Verethragna sneezed for some reason. Odd, gods such as him do not sneeze, not unless divine arts were used to affect him.

Nevermind, he needed to focus on his battle against Perseus. The blonde warrior looked quite excited about the duel.

Perhaps he could have some fun while he was at it.

_In the middle of Sweden's nowhere…_

He secured his backpack and started skiing his way to the valley the mansion was supposedly built in. Despite the horrific snow and blistering wind, Godou had made surprising progress. While most of his athletic ability came from his time as a baseball player, he practiced quite a few sports with his grandfather. One of them happened to be skiing, though that had been downhill under a blue sky while this was cross-country in a blizzard. It was still a good experience and he doubted he would have made it this far if he hadn't learnt the sport.

Reaching a hill, he started speeding up. He had been using nothing, but his own power to propel himself for hours so the chance to let gravity to the work for him was too great to pass up. When he reached the edge, he gave one last push and dove down the mountain side.

As most people would tell you, alpine skiing in a blizzard with a free heel is not a wise thing to do. Downhill skiing is dangerous under normal circumstances, due to the high speed and relatively little protection. Attempt of doing the same with free-heel bindings and low visibility while exhausted is generally considered to be idiotic.

For Godou however, it was a blessing. His muscles were aching from overexertion and every single movement felt like acid was being poured into his bones. To finally allow his legs a much needed rest was a feeling beyond description. He could almost feel the tears fall down his face, only to freeze from the blistering cold. It was such a heavenly feeling that he totally ignored all the hallucinations he might have thought he was suffering from, only focusing on the white landscape in front of him. As such, he ignored the entity racing down the mountain side next to him. He didn't care that it started pulling up in front of him, only to back up and turn when Godou turned away from the entity.

In the end, Godou left the otherworldly existence behind as he accelerated even more, hoping that when he reached the mansion he would be able to rest. He could not have known that his little slalom had left a god's pride appropriately wounded.

When he reached the end of the hill, he was able to see the house. It was hard not to, every single light in the mansion had been lit for some reason. It looked like a Christmas tree that had fallen down with the bright lights, wooden roof, stone walls and crust of snow. Though why the owners had decided to light every lamp in the house was a mystery. The electricity bill would have been enormous if a mansion that large had to be illuminated like that every day of the week. More than even a wealthy family could afford.

He trudged forward, his sore muscles protesting against every step, or slide, he made. Honestly, if he didn't get some sleep in a real bed soon, he didn't know what he would do!

He was so tired that he didn't think of looking up. If he had he would have seen the being he had left behind earlier. He would have noticed the horse standing in the sky, as if it was solid ground. It was so white it could have been mistaken for snow if it wasn't clad in flames staring from its mane, tail and hooves. It was larger than any horse bred by man; even an elephant would cower before the monstrous behemoth the rider was mounted upon. But the really scary part was the rider on its back.

Just like with the horse, the rider followed a colour scheme. She was clad in white, from head to toe. The woman on the white horse wore a white dress. It looked like a priestess garb with one notable exception; the seams were on fire. Her entire outfit was burning in fact, from bottom to top, but she didn't even seem to notice. Even though the flames licked her skin and hair, her face was solely focused on Godou.

Her face was quite beautiful. Her skin was as white as alabaster, not sickly pale as one would think, but she looked radiant with warm energy. Her hair was a golden blonde and it was difficult to tell where the flames started and her hair ended. In fact, her hair looked like it was made of fire at the ends. Her lips were a bright scarlet, outshining any gemstone you could find. On the other hand, her eyes were a deep green and shone with barely concealed power. All of these traits gave her the visage of a queen, a wise and benevolent ruler gazing down on her subjects.

She was quite small compared to her mount. The behemoth she rode was larger than any land-living creature so any human riding the horse would look small. Even by human standards, the lady was built quite petite. Some would even say she looked fragile. However had they known that the rider was several hundred meters away, they wouldn't be so quick to judge. Had the rider been standing next to them she would tower over the humans with their height of twenty-something feet. Despite her size, she didn't seem monstrously huge or ugly. It seemed as if her abnormal stature was completely normal, like she was perfection itself.

Even so, no man would ever make the mistake of trying to approach the beautiful anomaly now because of the rage emanating from her like heat from a fire. It was in her eyes, a deep burning wrath was visible in those green crystals. It was terrifying to witness, but as it was, no man was there to witness it.

Kusanagi Godou had already left her as he reached the house where he was hoping for shelter. He knocked on the large wooden doors with his mitten-covered hand. As soon as his hand touched the door, his arm exploded with stabbing agony. It felt as if a thousand needles were stabbing his arms all at once, simply by knocking on the door. Had he really let his arm freeze to the point of feeling pain at the simplest touch? He needed to get some warm food and clothes quickly. He might even die if this continued.

A butler opened the door and let him in. He was one of those old-fashioned butlers, with a suit that had long tails. He even had a monocle and a mustache. Though the monocle made it hard to see, he did catch the look of disgust the man gave him as Godou took of his skis and placed them and his ski poles against the outside wall. That wasn't a good sign, did he do something wrong He hoped not, it would make it difficult to convince them to let him rest here. He didn't fancy his odds in the blizzard at the moment so his only hope was to rest inside the manor.

When he got inside, he removed his outer clothes and hung them on the clothes hanger. As he didn't know where else to put it, he let his backpack rest against the wall. He then turned around to the butler, who was still giving him the evil eye, and asked.

"Umm, is it possible for me to sleep here for a while until the weather gets better?" He stuttered from the cold, making his broken English even more obvious. "The blizzard is supposed to continue for a few days and I can't go out there without rest." He tried to get his point across by emphasizing the snowstorm as much as possible.

The butler looked him in the eyes before giving a short reply. "You'll have to ask the Herr Silverström about that." before turning around and leaving. After removing his soaked boots, Godou followed him. He stopped, ran back to his backpack and removed a large package from it and ran after the rude butler. He caught up just as the man opened a large door with intrinsically carved images on the wood. He motioned Godou to enter, though with the impatience and subtlety of a brick. It looked more like he was twitching his head to the entrance while his arm was trying to poke a hole in the air.

Godou decided that he didn't have the energy to bother and just walked through the door, ignoring the butler.

Inside was a man sitting in a large armchair. He was dressed in a red velvet morning robe, Godou thought it was called a smoking jacket, and was smoking from a large white pipe. When he looked up and saw the boy, his face broke out a large smile. He put his pipe down, stood up and walked briskly over to the boy. When he reached Godou, he stopped. This of course made Godou nervous. What was he thinking? Just as Godou was about to introduce himself, the man ripped the package from his hands and walked back to his chair. He gave Godou a slight glare and then turned back to his package which he ripped open with greed evident on his face.

Godou was shocked. He had thought the butler was rude, but the master of the house topped even that. Godou just braved a blizzard just so the man could get his stupid tablet in time and he didn't even get a word of gratitude. The man wasn't just rude, he was a downright bastard! Godou wanted to let his anger show, but he suppressed it. He had to ask the man for a place to stay while the storm passed. Taking a deep breath, he opened his mouth to speak for the second time in a week.

"I'm sorry to ask you this, but is it possible for me to stay here for a few days? I can't go back until the storm stops and I need to sleep. The tent couldn't handle the winds so I had to move when the storm arrived." He tried to make the obviously arrogant man realize his situation. The man looked at Godou again and he saw the disgust in his eyes. He really didn't like foreigners it seemed.

"Sure, as long as you don't touch anything important. This mansion has been my family's home for generations and I don't want you breaking anything." He turned back to the tablet again and traced the outline of the wolf. Suddenly he froze before he turned back to Godou again. Sniffing the air, he held his nose and waved his hand in front of his face. "And take a bath or something! Didn't you shower before you got here?" he said angrily.

Godou flushed. "N-no, I didn't have the chance to. I-I'm going to go… and take a shower then." `It's not like I had to ski across miles of snow for a week in order to get you that damned thing so cut me some slack!´ He marched out of the room, now fully aware of the stench his sweat-drenched clothes were giving off. He asked the butler where the bathroom was and went to get his reserve clothes.

After having a nice soak in the bathtub, a nice, soak which he used to clean his grimy hair more than three times in order to get rid of the dirt that had developed, he put on his clothes. Simple jeans and a shirt covered with a thicker sweater were not ideal for winter camping, but he had planned to use it in town. He didn't have anything else to use as he had to throw his hiking clothes in the washing machine (the butler had been adamant in refusing to touch them). He was currently in his assigned room, a small square room that was obviously made for the lowest servants as it only had a bed and a dresser.

He thought back to his response to the man, Herr Silverström he remembered the butler saying. He had not been prepared for the rude reception and had lost his temper. He had meant to ask him a few questions, but it was hard to do that when the guy kept insulting him. He wanted to ask what the tablet represented. He hadn't bothered to ask his grandpa, but during the time he traveled with it he grew curious. Now he had to wait until he got back to japan to figure it out.

He decided to go to sleep after eating his dinner. Dry bread and powdered milk had been the ordinary meal he had during his trip so he had been looking forward to eating something proper, but the butler had told him if he had food with him he should eat it.

Godou shook his head. There was rude and there was Rude. This was neither, it was just plain evil.

The next day…

Godou woke up with a smile on his face. For the first time in a week he had slept in a proper bed! His back didn't hurt after improper sleeping positions and he could finally feel his fingers and toes again. He threw of the covers and started wiggling his toes, only to wince as the skin which had become cracked as it dried sent small flares of pain up his legs. It looked like it would take some time before he could recover enough to return. He didn't like his chances of surviving another blizzard in his current condition.

He stood up, careful not to aggravate his sore feet and started dressing himself. It took significantly longer than he had expected due to the wounds on his hands and feet. Just as he finished, he heard a knock on the door. Before he had the chance to answer, the door swung open and the butler walked in. He saw the bed Godou had slept in and sneered, probably disliking the fact that he would have to wash the sheets later on. He turned back to Godou and sighed.

"The mistress returned last night and was wondering whose clothes were hanging to dry. When she found out there was a guest she told us to inform her when you woke up. Seeing as you are awake, I shall take you to see the mistress now." He said in a tone that meant there was no discussion about it. He started walking, expecting Godou to follow.

Godou did his best to keep up, but every step made him wince. It seemed the butler took some sort of sick pleasure in keeping a pace he knew Godou could not follow with his damaged feet. He thought he even saw the mustached man sneak a peek at him in order to make sure he wasn't catching up.

_`That rotten bastard_!´ Thought the teenager. He was at his breaking point with the old man and he was sincerely hoping that the `Mistress´ was not like the butler or master of the estate.

They entered a large room, though the design differed greatly from the rest of the mansion. While most of the rooms in the house were designed with walls covered with dark tapestries, this room had bright colors instead. In the center of the room was a large table. It looked exactly like one taken from a movie in which the occupants were sitting on the opposite sides and had to yell at eachother to be heard. Godou had to repress a snicker at the thought of Herr Silverström and his wife having to scream at each other in order to have a normal conversation.

His eyes were drawn to the woman standing at the end of the table. She was a beautiful woman, with blonde hair and blue eyes. The dress she wore concealed her curves mostly, but gave the illusion that she was curvier than most women. She appeared to be somewhere around twenty-five years old, but he couldn't be sure. When she saw him she gave him a smile, not the smile Herr Silverström gave him the night before, but genuine smile.

She approached him with a rapid pace. When she was in front of him she reached her hand forward in order to shake his hand. Godou shook it, surprised at the strength in her grip. He let go and she introduced herself.

"I'm sorry I couldn't greet you before, but I was just returning from my trip. Let me make amends for my tardiness. My name is Rosa Silverström and I'm the head of Silverström family. You met Niklas before, didn't you?" She motioned to the butler. Godou nodded and she continued. "My husband told me you arrived last night during the blizzard. Why didn't you call him so he could pick you up?" he noticed how the butler, Niklas, stiffened. Godou felt a twisted joy at the possibility of making his day ruined.

"I did, but they told me they were busy with something. And since there weren't any buses or trains I had to ski the way here. It took a week to make it, but then the blizzard showed up and… well, my clothes weren't the best on the market so I asked if I could stay here for a while." He finished. He took a look at Niklas and the butler shot him a hateful look.

Rosa stiffened. She had apparently not been told this little fact. She whirled around to face Niklas and ordered him to bring her husband to her. He hurried out of the room, eager to get out of his mistress's wrath. The door shut itself behind him as he left.

Rosa turned her flushed face back to the boy, now more in control of her temper it seemed. "I'm sorry you had to see that. It's just that… recently Johan has been getting more and more enthusiastic about collecting my family's heirlooms. I've never been able to figure out what he does with them, but he's behaving suspiciously. I'm worried that he's making plans to divorce me in order to take my money." She told him, her tired faces showing traces of the strain of living with the man Godou met yesterday. The memory from the night before reminded him of his question.

"Umm, miss Silverström? Do you by any chance know what the tablet I delivered was? It's been bugging me for some time now and I can't seem to be able to figure it out. Is it supposed to depict a wolf deity or something?" Godou was given the chance to see the fury return to her eyes, though this time it was far more powerful.

"Tablet? I don't remember him saying anything about a tablet. I thought you brought a book my father lent your grandfather. Are you sure it wasn't a book?" she asked him in turn.

"Yeah, it was a large stone tablet. About the size of a book, but it was made from grey stone and rectangular. It looked like it was a large wolf in the sky chasing the sun. I thought it was a picture of Fenrir, but that wolf was supposed to chase Odin, no the sun. So I thou… umm, are you okay?" He had stopped when he saw her expression.

She had a murderous look on her face, as if she was imagining someone being cruelly tortured to death. Her hands were clenched into fists and he was sure he saw blood flow between her fingers. A grinding noise was heard and he realized it was her teeth grinding against each other. Her entire body screamed of murder so much that Godou had preferred it if he hadn't asked the question. Just as he was about to ask what made her so mad, she grabbed his hand and started walking towards the door.

"Whoa- wait! Hold on! What's happening? Miss Silverström?" Godou asked the woman who was dragging him down the hallway. His feet protested against the pace the woman was using, but the rapid turn of events made him forget the pain. It seemed he had made some sort of mistake in mentioning the tablet to her as she held his hand in an iron grip. The way she stalked to the room he had met the main in smoking jacket made him nervous. What was going on?

"Listen up because this is important; when we go in there, I want you to find the object that you brought. It's a very important piece of history; one my husband has no right laying his hands on. He is merely a member of this family by marriage so he can only call himself Herr Silverström in my absence. That's why he's searching for a way to take over the household from me and that's where the tablet comes in. It's a long story, but the short version is; that tablet has certain properties that can give him the ability to usurp me from position as head and more. That's why he can't be allowed to keep it, do you understand?" she asked him as they reached the door.

Godou nodded, nervousness replaced by open at the chance to pay Johan for the night before. Rosa turned back to the door and opened it…

Only to be blasted back by the shockwave that emanated from the miniature sun in the room.

Godou was flung back until he hit the wall, stars dancing in front of his eyes. Any thoughts of payback gone, he tried to make sense of what had happened. Did he deliver a bomb or something? No, that wouldn't explain why Johan would set it off inside his house with him in the room. Whatever it was, the blast looked like it was burning in mid-air.

Hold on, it was burning in mid-air. It wasn't a blast though; it looked like a… woman riding a burning horse? He shook his head; the hit he took had obviously messed with his head. When he looked back, it would just be a large fire burning in the middle… no, it was a woman riding a burning horse. Great…

Rosa had also seen the woman and dropped to her knees, an act of subservience. Why, he didn't know, but he felt as though he shouldn't do the same. Whoever the woman was, he didn't feel like bowing. Why should he for that matter? She was just a figment of his imagination, brought forth by the trauma to his head. Rosa was probably just experiencing a different hallucination.

This was apparently the right thing to do as the woman started smiling. He might have been hallucinating, but that smile was both beautiful and terrifying at the same time, but more importantly, it was challenging. He suddenly felt a desire to wipe that smile off her face and look down upon her the same way she was looking down upon him. He had no idea where the feeling came from, but he knew he trusted it with his life.

"So the humans had the audacity to summon This Radiant One? While I admire thy courage, don't think this means I will spare thy life, witch. The only reason thine body hasn't been incinerated by the flames of Skinfaxi is because I'm curious on what thee have summoned This Radiant One for." The woman told them, but the way her gaze was fixed on Godou told him she was asking him for the reason. Rosa answered the woman, clearly not seeing the way the rider had asked Godou.

"We do not know why my foolish husband summoned someone of your stature, Oh Great One. We believe that he intended to slay you to become a godslayer and take control of my family's empire, but we have no such intention. And as you can see, my husband and his servant have already been burned to death by your steed." She was right. Beneath the hooves of the burning horse were two skeletons, badly burnt and smoking. One of the skeletons was holding the stone tablet Godou had painfully brought with him. When the woman saw the bones beneath her mount, she pulled the reins slightly. The horse understood the gesture and reared before slamming its front hooves down. The results were two skeletons smashed to dust beneath the horse's flaming hooves.

The goddess, as he decided to call her, turned her eyes back to Godou and smiled with glee when she noticed his own challenging stare.

"I see thee have recuperated from thine travels." She said. Godou would have answered her if he knew what she meant. He still hadn't recovered enough to walk more than a few feet without wincing. "Excellent, now we can have our rematch!"

Godou was dumbfounded. Rematch? He had never met this woman before and she claimed they had competed against each other. Ridiculous, she was just a figment of his imagination! He was about to voice his objection when the woman started speaking again.

"Though this time, we shall not race down hills and mountains, nor shall we race with speed. Indeed, the only reason thee managed to win against This Radiant one was because of the difference in methods. This time it shall be different. That's right, thee still haven't told This Radiant One your titles. Young one, what is thy name?" she asked him and despite his earlier reluctance, he felt his competitive streak flare up at the woman's arrogance.

"Kusanagi Godou." He introduced himself. The goddess smiled at his tone, amused by his antics.

"Ah, thy name is unfamiliar to This Radiant One's ears. It seems as though thee would have been a promising warrior if thee hadn't challenged This Radiant One to a race. Kusanagi Godou, I will take great pleasure in making thee admit defeat in front of the world. It seems This Radiant One is quite fortunate as well; to have been summoned to the same household the challenger resided in. Consider thyself fortunate as well that it was I who killed thee, and not another."

Godou felt his pulse rise at the way she was speaking, though if it was from fear or anger he didn't know. The hallucination was looking more real by the minute and his skin was hurting from the strange source of heat. If she wasn't an hallucination, then what was she?

"And who said I accepted your challenge? The way I see it, I win more by not accepting. I get to live and know that someone of your stature could not win against me, while you have to know that you lost against a fourteen year old kid. On the other hand, I gain nothing from accepting, only the possibility of death." He told the rider.

She frowned, obviously not happy with the thought of him rejecting her challenge. And then she gained a sly smile. "If thee do not accept, I will burn this land and everyone who dwells in it to ash. That includes the insignificant one next to thee." He saw how Rosa had stiffened at the thought of being burned alive, like her husband and butler. Godou agreed with her line of thought, incineration was not how he planned to go to the other side.

"And if I win? A bet is no bet unless both sides have something to win. If I lose then I die and you get your pride back. But you still haven't said what I will get if I win." Honestly he was hoping she wouldn't want to bet anything and just give up. Unfortunately, he didn't get his wish.

"If thee win? Hah, thee make an excellent jester! Nevertheless, thy point is valid. A winner should always have his prize. If it is thy victory, This Radiant one will surrender her might as is fitting for a goddess of the race to forfeit her chariot when in defeat." She told him, clearly not believing in the possibility of her defeat. Godou wouldn't either, but his pride as an athlete wouldn't let him admit defeat

"All right, fine! So how do we race then? I only have my skis with me and I don't know any other sports that are useful in this weather." He asked, sighing at the inevitability. All he could do now was damage control. Hopefully, make it out alive. Come to think of it, he didn't feel the panic he had expected. He thought that most people would snap if faced with the possibility of their death, but he didn't feel anything. Was this perhaps the acceptance that people spoke of?

"It's quite simple; we try to survive the longest while trying to kill one another." She told him with the same smile as before.

Godou's jaw dropped. That was just murder, plain and simple. He was about to protest when the horse reared and started galloping towards him. He had less than a second to dodge, a feat he managed only due to his experience as a baseball player. He rolled to the side, just barely making it out of the way of the stampeding stallion. He turned his head just in time to see it destroy the wall in its way and disappear out of sight. The fire from the horse covered the edges of the hole in bright flames which started spreading to the walls. He turned to Rosa, expecting an answer. Her face was blank and her eyes had a vacant look.

"What the hell was that?!" he yelled. This seemed to snap her out of whatever daydream she had. She focused on him.

"Apparently a goddess wants to kill you for having beaten her in a race! What the hell did you do to her in order to win?!" she yelled back. She was just as astonished as he was it seemed.

"I don't know and I don't care! How do I beat her?" He honestly didn't care a single bit about how he supposedly had beaten her when she had that monster of a horse to ride on. How did she even control it?

"I- it's not possible to kill a goddess just like that! Only a few people have managed it and I don't know how to contact them. It's impossible for us to kill her!"

"Then why can't we send her back? Johan had summoned her, right? So it should be possible to de-summon her." He was grasping at straws here. He didn't even know gods existed until a few moments ago, but he needed to find some kind of weapon.

"I- I don't know. Johan used the tablet, but I don't know how he activated it. Like I told you, we can't… where are you going?!"

Godou had started running towards the spot he had seen the tablet last. In the hands of the skeleton the horse had crushed. He reached the miniature crater and started digging through the ash that had been an arrogant bastard. He felt dirty from touching a corpse, even if it had been sterilized to the highest degree. The ash was hot to the point of burning his hands and causing blisters to appear. Finally he saw a large block of stone in the center of the crater. He reached out to grab it, only to flinch back as the heat emanating from it burned his fingers. He should have expected that really, the flames from the horse must have heated it up to this point.

He ripped his sweater off and wrapped it around his hands. Carefully he lifted the stone tablet up I order to get a good look at it, trying to make sense of it. It showed a large wolf standing in the sky. It was chasing after the sun, its maw wide open. It looked as if it wanted to devour the sun and the horse pulling it. The horse pulling it… was it the same horse the goddess was riding. If so, could he use it to kill the horse? He would never be able to stop her if he didn't get her off the horse first.

It was when he decided to try the theory out that the horse burst through the wall again. He didn't have much time to figure out how to use it, but the moment the stallion reached him and touched the flat piece of stone, he wanted to make the horse go away.

There was a moment of complete silence as the three people in the demolished room realized what had happened. The horse had vanished! The rider, who had been in mid-air when it had been disappeared, fell down on the ground when gravity took a hold on her. Godou hadn't believed his eyes, it had actually worked! He hadn't thought it would do anything, but to destroy it completely? That was beyond amazing! No it hadn't been destroyed, it had been absorbed. He felt the stone tablet in his wrapped hands increase in warmth as his sweater started to smoke.

He was about to cheer when the goddess, because he didn't think there was a word more suitable to describe her, stood up again. He realized that despite her horse gone, she was still a goddess and he was a human with a crippling shoulder injury. He would be hard-pressed to defeat a normal adult woman; to try to defeat a goddess would be suicide. There was no question about surrendering as she began to speak.

"So thee has stolen my horse thinking thee could defeat me? Thee would have me stand on the ground, I who belong in the heavens?! Know thy place, Thrall!" She screamed. All of a sudden, her body was engulfed in flames and her eyes which had been green before had turned into two blazing embers. She raised her hand and a beam of pure-white light shot forward to strike him.

Godou dodged in the last second. He dove out of the way and just in time, the spot he had been standing on had been turned into a mess of molted stone and fire. A streak of orange lava had been carved along the light's path. He felt the heat burn the hair on his unprotected arms and he knew that if that beam got even an indirect hit, he would dead before he knew what hit him. As the goddess changed her aim, he raised the tablet again and this time instead of wishing he could make her light vanish, he wanted to attack her in turn.

The tablet glowed orange as the heat increased immensely. His sweater, which had been able to contain most of the heat until now, burst into flames as the horse which had been sealed away galloped from the stone. It met the brilliant light head on, resulting in an explosion that knocked Rosa and Godou back.

Pain. Pain. Pain. Pain. Painpain. Painpainpain. Painpainpainpain. Painpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpainpain.

Total and utter agony coursed through his body. It felt like his entire core was burning and his veins were filled with molten iron. There were not enough words in human tongue to describe the soul wrenching torment he was going through. Any movement whatsoever brought him waves of excruciating pain. He had forgotten how to breathe until he noticed his lungs burning with a different ache. He forced himself to take a slow breath, but in the end all he got were short gasps. It took several seconds before he could take a normal breath again, but even those were more like wheezing gulps.

Godou slowly got to his feet, the adrenaline flowing in his veins keeping him on high alert. He took in his surroundings. The blast had done a lot of damage to the wing they had been in. The ballroom looked nothing like it had before. The roof was nonexistent as he could see the sky, or at least the night sky. Winter in northern Sweden was unlike that of japan. It was night for an entire month and the only light left was from the stallion trotting around. Small pieces of the roof rained down like the snow, no piece larger than a fist. It seemed Godou and Rosa had been lucky. Most of the explosion had been directed towards the goddess as the stallion had shielded the humans from the blast while at the same time focusing it on the enemy. That meant that their side of the room had been left relatively intact. The walls had at least been left standing. The opposite side was not in the same condition.

The walls had been decimated, letting Godou see out into the snow covered valley. Though most of the snow had been melted from the intense heat, new snow was quick to cover the drenched fields. The roof, walls and floor had been ripped apart; making it look like someone had cut the room in half and left with the one part, leaving the other standing with a great view. He tightened his grip on the tablet; not caring about the sizzling sound that was produced as the hot stone burned his abused hands. It seemed to have grown even hotter after the explosion. Did he absorb even more of her power?

Godou was about to let out a sigh of relief, when he heard laughter. Insane laughter filled the air, ominous enough to give him goose bumps. He searched the field for the source of the laughter, already knowing who it was. He had hoped the last attack had finished the goddess, but it would apparently take more than that to kill her.

From the edges of his vision emerged a figure. It was large, larger than the goddess herself. It was two giant horses, slightly smaller than the stallion that had had stopped to stare at the newcomer. Behind the two horses was a two-wheeled chariot with blades attached to the center of each wheel. The chariot itself was richly decorated; the armor-plating was made of gold with silver symbols, the blades were coated in blue flames and the wheels resembled a sun, each ray of light sharp enough to pierce the ground.

And in that chariot stood the goddess. No signs of injuries or blemishes on her clothing, her visage made him think an explosion of such caliber was not enough to faze her . Her clothes had changed even, the white fabrics nowhere in sight. Gone were the priestess garb and instead she wore the clothes of a warrior-huntress. Long leather boots covered her legs and she wore a skirt made from leather and plated with steel. Her shirt was similarly made from animal hides, but was made from several pieces of black leather overlapping each other like scales. A long black cloak, edged with white fur, made from some beast's pelt hung from her shoulders. She held the reins with her left hand and in her right was a long spear, similar to a lance. The spear forked into two sharp points, just a centimeter apart. The handle of the spear was red and near the tip of the spear hung a long piece of black fabric.

The new outfit, weapon and chariot, added with the fact that she had taken the blast without injury were all reasons for Godou to fear what came next. Despite all those warnings, the one thing he did not like was the smile on her face. For she was not the furious or arrogant goddess she had been just moments earlier. She was wearing a grin that threatened to cut her face in half and her uncontrollable laughter was deafening even from a hundred meters, but there was no malice in her eyes. Just pure joy and exhilaration…

"I have to admit…" She began as she twirled her spear around. "… That This Radiant One did not anticipate thee to hold out for this long. I thought this would be an easy win, with thee lying dead at my feet within seconds. Now look at what has happened; thee have stolen two of my authorities and have forced me to use two of my strongest as well. Even if This Radiant One loses here, I won't regret a single minute of it. Now!" she yelled as she gripped her reins, making the horses rear. "…Let us have an honourable race to the death!" She finished with an honest smile.

Despite his reluctance to fight, he could not find it in him to hate the woman for her wish to kill or be killed. She seemed so innocent in her desire that disliking her was impossible.

"Idiot, if someone wins a race to the death that means he would be the one to die. If you want to then you can win this little race of yours." It might have been the pain making him delirious or it might have been his grandfather's lessons in dealing with women, but he really didn't want to leave empty-handed.

She laughed a normal laugh you would expect an ordinary woman would give after being complimented. Her eyes were filled with mirth as she returned his offer.

"I'm afraid not. I can't let thee go after having come this far in the battle, though I am tempted to take thee on as a pet, Kusanagi Godou. It is not often This Radiant One meet such an outstanding male specimen such as thee."

He grimaced; he did not like the thought of being treated like pet for the rest of his life.

"Unfortunately, I will have to decline, although you never did give me your name. I've been thinking of you as a goddess or hallucination until now, but it would be nice to have a name for you. It's not fair if you know my name, but I don't know yours."

She thought for a moment. It couldn't be that hard to give him her name, could it?

"Very well, I shall give thee the honour of hearing This Radiant one's name before we duel. I go by many names, but I shall give thee the one used still. I am Sòl, rider of the sun and huntress of wolves. I have many others, but my core is the herald of the sun. Is this enough to satisfy thy curiosity, Kusanagi Godou? I have many more, but they have been lost in the eons passed." She put on a polite facade, but there was no question about it. There would be no more discussion or arguments after this, only the death of one or both combatants.

"Indeed it is. Thank you, lady Sòl." He said no more, but braced himself for the inevitable clash.

He felt the tablet in his hands, the smoke coming from it ensuring that there was still some power in it. What should he do? He could use the blast like earlier and hope she was hit, but he doubted it would work. Not when she had a new mount to ride on. He had caught her off-guard earlier, but if the chariot was as fast as her previous ride then it wouldn't be fast enough to score a fatal wound. On the other hand, if he let himself be bait in order to lure her close enough then the blast would tear him to bits.

He was trying to come up a successful plan when he felt a nudge on his shoulder. He looked up. The stallion he had used to blast Sòl earlier was beside him. It was staring at him, like it wanted to tell him something. He didn't understand though, he had never had the opportunity to learn how to ride before. The horse lost its patience eventually and bit his collar, lifting him up and planted him on its back. He was astonished. Had the horse just let him ride it? Why? He had stolen it from its rightful owner and used it in an attack against said aforementioned owner. It didn't have a reason to aid him.

"Are you sure about this? I don't know how to ride, you know." He said. The horse neighed, as if trying to say `Oh please, you don't need to know how to ride with me. I'm too awesome for that! ´ He grinned. He let go of the tablet with his left hand and gripped the reins that had naturally appeared when he sat on its back.

"Are you ready, Kusanagi Godou?" Sòl asked from the opposite side of the field. Godou checked his equipment. He only had the tablet and the stallion, but Sòl had a chariot as well as a spear. He needed something to level the playing field. The tablet carried a powerful attack, but it was most likely only capable of one round. If he missed then it would be over for him and he couldn't use the tablet to block her spear. He needed a close ranged weapon. Something like…

His eyes narrowed as he knew what he needed. Could he make it back to the entrance before she caught up to him? There was a chance, but that was only possible if his stallion was faster than her steeds.

"Yeah, I'm ready! Come and get me then!" He yelled over the storm brewing above them. Then he pulled the reins and rode… straight through the house…

Sòl had been so surprised by the action that she hadn't even thought to follow him. It wasn't until he crashed through the first wall that she seemed to wake from the shock. She flicked the reins, urging the horses to follow the rider. The delay in action seemed to be all Godou needed.

Godou felt at home riding the flaming stallion. At the same time, he had never before felt such a rush as riding. Despite the fact that he had never ridden before in his life, except for that one time he had the chance to ride a donkey as a child, he knew exactly how to ride the steed to its destination. The flames from the mane, tail and hooves didn't seem to burn him, but they protected him from the blistering cold instead. The reins in his hand were long, smooth and made from otherworldly leather with supernatural effects as he didn't feel any pain from holding it with his bleeding and scorched hands. The debris from the walls he was breaking down didn't seem to hit him, as though there was an invisible shield protecting the rider from such mundane obstacles. The tablet in his hands was still searing his right hand as he held it, but the pain was no longer there. Either the magical properties of the stallion were healing him or the heat had charred his pain receptors, but either way, he could finally see a way to end this battle.

The last wall was finally broken down when Sòl caught up to him. That was to be expected though; his horse had taken a beam of scorching light head on while her stallions were fresh and fit for fight. That didn't matter however, he had found what he wanted. The door he smashed through had flown in all directions in small pieces, but it was what was next to the door he had been searching for.

As Sòl swung her spear at him, he brought up his makeshift weapon to block it. It succeeded and the spear was stopped just centimeters away from his face. Sòl's eyes widened once more in surprise at his weapon, bursting out in laughter. Godou used this time to pull his stallion away from her chariot with his right hand holding both the tablet and the reins.

"Thy actions never fail to amuse this Radiant One. Who would ever consider blocking a celestial weapon with a ski pole of all possible things?" Her laughter was hysterical and she brought her hand to her mouth as her laughter was too much to bear.

It was true; in his left hand was his aluminum ski pole he had used to travel here. It was the only thing he had used before and he knew where it was. It was natural for him to try and find a way to block her divine weapon. Unfortunately he didn't have a magic sword like Excalibur or Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi so he would have to improvise, hence his current lance/sword. He had a hunch that the magic from the stallion would bleed over to the pole, but he hadn't expected it to block her strike completely. Though with the power the goddess used to swing the spear she was using, he didn't think the makeshift polearm would hold for long either. The aluminum was already bent from the previous strike and the only reason Godou could hold his own against Sòl was because of the adrenaline pumping through his veins and the boost he got from the stallion. If this tuned into a war of attrition, he would lose. He needed to end this within the next three minutes or he would die from exhaustion and blood loss.

Finding his resolve he aimed his lance at the goddess, intending to turn the battle into a jousting match. He didn't know any of the rules nor did he have experience of it, but he knew that it would be difficult for her to hit him as he was in a higher position. Though he didn't know if a mundane object would affect a goddess he figured it was worth a shot.

"It's not like I had a choice. You came at me with a spear so of course I had to arm myself and since I don't have a spear or sword with me, I had to find something to use. Unless you're willing to give up your own spear, I'll be keeping this." He responded with a grim smile. Honestly, he didn't know if the smile he was wearing was from the pain making him lose his grip of reality or if he was starting to hallucinate inside his hallucinations. Either way, this looked like it was the end of their fight.

It seemed this would be the last, and technically the first, charge. His stallion would not survive a direct confrontation with the chariot and Godou was at his last legs as he would pass out in a few minutes. He flicked the reins at the same time as Sòl did, their steeds galloping towards each other. In terms of positioning, Godou had the upper hand. He was higher up and would have an easier time hitting his opponent. Sòl would have to pierce through his horse in order to strike a fatal blow while he could just aim at her head.

Unfortunately, Sòl did not need to strike a fatal blow. She would just have to strike his legs or arms and the shock would take care of the rest. She also had the advantage of wielding a celestial weapon while he was wielding a mundane object. There was no question about who was more likely to win.

The charge was over faster than he had expected. Though he really should have expected it… they were both riding divine beasts, beings stronger and faster than any animal. They had reached each other in less than a second and he trusted his weapon towards her belly, knowing his awful timing would make the strike higher than what it should have been. His aim was true. His aluminum pole, strengthened by the power of the stallion, had struck her chest, the bladed tip sticking out through her back. Despite that she didn't seem too bothered by it. It was himself he was worried about.

He had been right about the fact that she would have to strike through the horse in order to pierce a vital spot. He hadn't known she would be able to do it with such ease. The red spear had struck the stallion's throat and protruded from the back of its neck. That meant it had gone straight through Godou's chest as well. However the sheer power behind the thrust had made sure the spear had gone through him and over half of the lance was sticking out of his back. He coughed up blood. Luckily, or whatever it could be called as having a spear in his chest was not lucky, the spear had pierced his right side which meant his heart was fine, but his right lung was demolished.

"It seems as though this race was my win, Kusanagi Godou." Sòl lamented. Was she feeling sad that she had killed him?

"Yu..yup." Every word was a struggle, but thanks to the stallion and his own stubbornness, he managed to give his final words.

"You're the one… who's going to die first."

Sòl turned to look at him curiously before she realized what he had meant. He still had the tablet left and he now had her weapon as well. They were also closer to eachother, close enough for Godou to be able to fire and not miss. She tried to flick the reins in order for the horses to pull the chariot out of the way, but it was too late.

Godou felt the tablet give off a heat that burned his face, but he still aimed it towards the goddess. At the same time, he ripped the spear out of his body and threw it. The spear was engulfed in the same white light Sòl had fired earlier and the beam was turned blood red as it struck the goddess. There had been no chance for her to escape.

The lance pierced the same place the pole had struck, but unlike the small wound she had received earlier, this strike was magnificent to watch.

A large explosion was visible to anyone in the valley, even during the storm. When the light faded away, one could see a woman standing in the middle of a crater.

The woman had a spear in her chest and copious amounts of blood dripping down her armour and onto the ground, and yet she had a magnificent smile on her face, one filled with satisfaction and joy. Had anyone seen her they would have thought she had just received the greatest joy imaginable.

Kusanagi Godou saw her and she stared back. He had never thought she was real, only a figment of his imagination, but the pain in his chest was too real to be true. The power in her eyes was also more than he could ever imagine.

"Kusanagi Godou, never before in the history of This Radiant One have I felt such joy after a battle. I thank thee from the bottom of my heart. Know this, Rider from the East, thee shall not die tonight from the wounds This Radiant One has given thee, for the curse of Pandora shall revive thee and turn thee into a king. Use This Radiant One's power and authorities as thy shield and lance and make the world shudder at the name of the slayer of Sòl. However remember, Rider from the East, many of my kin will seek thee out to battle as well. Forge thy steel and harden thy armour, the gods of old shall seek you out to battle." Blood began to flow from her mouth as the wounds proved fatal. A sigh escaped her lips.

"Truly a shame, to find such a promising warrior only to die after a bout. Had thee been older I wouldn't have hesitated in making thee my bedding companion. Truly a shame." With that, her body burned in purple flames until there was nothing, but ashes left.

Godou, to his credit, didn't fall off the horse. The horse, to its credit, didn't collapse either. It stood proudly on its feet, even as the golden blood flowed from the hole in its throat. It wasn't until it finally died that the stallion dispersed in an intense show of fireworks. As Godou had lost his mount, he fell onto the scorched earth in disarray. His arms had been broken, burned, ripped apart and cauterized. His lungs and been pierced and burned and his skin had been seared of from the heat of the attacks he had stolen and unleashed. His face and hair had melted into a mess looking nothing like the human he had once been. His consciousness had long escaped him and his heart was losing strength.

Soon after landed, his heart stopped beating once and for all.

The goddess Sòl:

The goddess known as Sòl appeared several thousand years ago as an unnamed goddess of the sun and hunt. She was a huntress who rode on a stallion of flames and whose favorite prey was the wolf. She rode through the sky searching for her prey and when she found it she would strike with her spear which had been said to never miss. She wore the hide of her prize as armour, protecting her from the blades of her foes. The armour was said to be scorched black from her fire and any blade that touched it melted from the heat.

She was later evolved to the Scandinavian god, Dagr. Time had changed her into male god who brought the dawn. Dagr rode the white stallion Skinfaxi and was the most beautiful god in the northern pantheon. The horse had been a gift as her beauty could not be that of a mortal. As such, Dagr became a god with the mount of divinity.

But Dagr was also a hero named Svipdagr. He was son of Gròa, a shamanic priestess. He searched for his bride, and found her to be Freya, the goddess of love, gold, magic, fertility and death. The goddess-turned-god assimilated the legend of the Freya and Sòl became once more a goddess.

Years later her legend would change once more, but this time she would become a goddess of the sun. She gained the name of Sòl or Sunna and she carried the sun once more. She would have an antagonistic relationship with Skòll, a giant wolf who would one day devour the sun. As Sòl was the goddess of the hunt, she tried to chase the wolf down while the wolf tried to hunt her down in turn. They would chase eachother until Ragnarok, when Skòll would devour the goddess, but Sòl would be reborn as her daughter and slay her prey. She would then continue her chase of the wolves across the skies.

Like all gods, Sòl is a collection of several gods who have assimilated and discarded other traits over the ages. These legends are the only known examples of her origins.


	2. A Campione is Born

**So here's the second chapter of Rider of The East. Some of you might have noticed that I gave him multiple authorities. Well only one of them is combat suitable, the rest are useless against a god. **

**So this is the first step to becoming a different Godou. He had other authorities, a different attitude for magic and he's preparing for the eventual clash against his next opponent.**

**This is what I have to ask you: who shall his first opponent be? I have already made a list of his future opponents, but I'd like your opinions as well. The only requirements are that it must be a deity of steel and he uses a sword. That's it… I have a good idea of who I shall use, but this is your chance to tell me what you think. Remember to make it a little discreet though, if it is superobvious who it is than it's just boring.**

**Send me a PM or leave a review!**

* * *

**ROTE**

When people suffer heavy head trauma, they can sometimes experience visions. These can be simple hallucinations, objects that appear in their everyday life that aren't really there. They can be voices inside their heads, or heavier illusions where they are completely cut off from the real world and enter a world made from their own imaginations.

"Wakey wakey, Godou-kyun! It's time to get up!" A bright voice piped up.

It seemed as if Godou was experiencing the latter variant.

His head pounded, like he had been banging his head against a wall the entire night. He didn't know why it hurt; he didn't remember hitting it or anything. It just felt like the blood vessels in his head had burst all at the same time.

"Godou-kyun? Hellooooo?" the voice asked.

What the hell did he do? He didn't know what had happened the night before. It was a huge blank; he couldn't recall anything that could have given him such a headache. He lifted his hand and noted that it was extremely heavy. Had he been training overtime? His limbs felt like they were made of cement and simply holding his head was a harder task than it should ever have been. How did he get into such a state?

"Oi, don't ignore me!" the feminine voice said, a hint of irritation creeping into its tone.

Had he gotten into a fight? That would explain the migraine and the difficulty of moving his limbs, but it seemed strange to not feel pain in his body and just his head. There was also a possibility of catching a virus, though he had never gotten this sick in his life. It would have to be a sinister disease indeed for him to be this feel this awful, but he had never heard any warnings about a new sickness. If it was a new disease then there would be warning signs telling people to wash their hands and similar precautions, but no such things had been sent.

Accident then? Had he walked in front of a car and get hit? No, he would still feel pain from the impact and he would be one large bruise after the metal vehicle had hit his flesh and body. That ruled out accident, sickness, fight and overtraining… He had never been one to wake up not knowing what he had done so why didn't he have any clue whatsoever about what had happened the night before?!

"I said don't ignore me!" the voice now growled and when it had finished, pain exploded from his nose.

"Waaaaahaaaahahaaaaa!" he yelled as he held his now broken nose, blood dripping from between his fingers.

"Serves you right for ignoring me! Humph!" the speaker said.

He turned to the source of the voice. It was a girl, maybe fourteen or fifteen years old. She looked about as old as him, but as she was sulking with a frown on her face, she looked younger, childish even, as a result. Her hair was violet, an odd colour, and was set in two long twintails. She wore a small white dress in a design he had never seen before.

Could this be the famous tsundere-imouto character Sorimachi is always nagging him about? Had he died and gone to anime-heaven? Was there such a thing?

"What did you punch me for?! Or more importantly, who the hell are you?!" Though it sounded more like `Vadt didt yu pungth me fo'?! O' mo' impottantly wo a' yu?!´but the result was the same.

She "humph"-ed again, apparently angry over the fact that he hadn't acknowledged her existence until she had shoved her fist in his face. Was she was still mad even after she had broken his nose? Honestly, what is it with girls and violence? Shizuka didn't hesitate to punch him if he didn't listen and Asuka was the same. He feared the day the two decided to gang up on him. He doubted he would survive that encounter.

He prodded his nose carefully, trying to find the extent of the damage. He was shocked though, to find that it wasn't really broken. He was bleeding, but it had already stopped and the cartilage had been reset. The only signs of it ever being broken were the small droplets of blood covering his hands and shirt.

"Seriously?" His temporal speech impediment had disappeared when his nose had healed. "You break my nose and you're still mad about me not answering you? You had no idea of the headache I was suffering from and you just went and punched me. Really hard, I might add. You didn't hold back even though I was half asleep." He said, wiping his hands on his shirt. If the shirt was already bloodied then it wouldn't matter if he wiped his hands on it.

Guilt became evident on her face as she heard his complaints. "Okay, so maybe I went overboard, but that is your fault too! Normally I can contact a new Campione when they are born, but you kept sleeping even after you came here. I'm not used to someone just coming here to sleep…" the last part was said in a quiet whisper. Had Godou focused on her face he would have seen her rubbing her index fingers together and her face flushing, but he had been too busy seeing his surroundings instead.

All around him was a strange mist that covered the landscape in white. He couldn't see anything else, just white mist and a girl barely older than him. The ground was also strange. It wasn't a natural creation, as grass, rock, sand or snow never felt or looked like this ground. Nor was it manmade, as there was no cement, wood or metal that could feel this soft. Where was he? Last thing he remembered was him waking up in the Silverström estate and meeting the mistress of the household called Rosa. After that he had met… His eyes widened as he snapped back to the girl.

"What about the goddess?! What happened to it? Did she die or was she able to survive?" he asked the violet haired girl. She looked up in surprise, shocked by the intensity in his voice.

"She died." The girl said. "Actually that's why you're here." She added.

Godou let out an "Eh?" he was here because he had killed a goddess? "Wait, is this hell?" he asked.

The girl looked at him for a second before bursting into laughter. She had to hold her stomach as she rolled on the floor in hysteria. "Is this… hell?! Haha, my sides! My sides! Seriously, that's what you thought this place is? Haha, it hurts, it hurts! I… can't… breathe! Haha!"

Godou blushed. He knew it was strange of him to think that. The place looked nothing like what people described Yomi as, even though nobody has ever gone to it and come back. Neither did it look like the European Hell with brimstone and hellfire. He just thought killing a goddess meant immediate judgment to hell and it was a logical conclusion. That's why he was a little angry at the fun she was having at his expense. He had no idea where he was and she was laughing at his worries.

"Stop laughing! Guys don't think girls who laugh like that are cute, you know!" he said in an attempt to get her to stop. It worked.

She stopped all of a sudden. She got up and when he saw her face, he wished he hadn't said his previous statement.

She had a dark aura around her and the scary smile she wore was not very comforting. Her eyes were empty and gave him the impression of a ghost. She started speaking in a very low, but hauntingly scary voice.

"What did you just say, Godou-kyun? Did you just imply that I wasn't cute? If so, I'll have to make you amend that statement." The voice was gentle, but the tone spoke of untold despair should he make a wrong move.

Godou decided that the wisest thing to do was to appease the demon the girl had turned into. Luckily, the years spent with Shizuka and Asuka as well as the time spent abroad with his grandpa made this an easy task. Though, in his young, ignorant and male/foolish mind, the task of appeasing women was more natural than any other man could claim. Therefore he didn't think of it in romantic terms, but it was more akin survival instinct.

"What?! No, what I meant was that you're cute and cute girls shouldn't roll around on the floor like that. You'll get dirty and it makes you look less cute than what you normally do." he said hastily. Dear god, he hoped it worked.

He had exaggerated on the `cuteness´ -factor while trying to make him look younger than he actually was by using a simple way of speaking. Most people tended to overlook insults and mistakes if the offender was a young child. The girl may look like she was around his age, but that would change if he made her appear older than he was. That would put her in a more mature position and make her feel flattered.

Most people would say Godou was a manipulator of women. Most people would be right… and at the same time most people would be wrong. Godou was not intentionally or actively manipulating the women who fell for him. Godou, like all men and women, had a self-preservation instinct. This instinct exists in all living beings. It it the reason animals survive in the wild, where a moment of rest or carelessness could mean death. Godou was exceptionally in tune with this instinct. During his travels with his grandpa he had seen many frightening things, such as tigers, robbers and terrorists. This instinct he had mastered made him able to see how certain things would play out. He had, for example, warned an airport of a terrorist plot and he had warned the police station of a murderer who would snap when finding his wife in bed with another man. This exceptional sense of instinct had been tampered with when he had seen his grandfather handle women.

Make no mistake; Kusanagi Ichirou was an exemplary citizen for most of the time. He had a strong sense for morals and he was incredible at picking up if a person he knew needed help. Most people who knew him thought he was somewhat of an everyday hero. That was who Ichirou was at his core, a great man who cared for his friends and family. The only problem was who he was on the side.

Kusanagi Ichirou was a womanizer. During his youth he made countless women fall in love with him and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that in the Kusanagi family, Ichirou was the man with the greatest amount of bastard children. As time passed and he grew even more skillful, he was eventually considered to be the Casanova of Scholars. By the time he met his girlfriend, and later wife, Chiyo, he had supposedly fathered over forty children. Most he didn't know about and the ones he did know about were ensured to be provided for. When he later married Chiyo and became a _real_ father, he stayed faithful to his wife.

Unfortunately, this meant that as long as he didn't commit the dirty deed, he could flirt and use his advanced knowledge to get his way in terms of prices and agreements. So when Kusanagi Ichirou used his amorous techniques to convince a shy attendant to let him pass without paying a fee, Kusanagi Godou was there to adapt the technique into his instincts. When Kusanagi Ichirou used his flirty personality to calm an enraged duchess, Kusanagi Godou was there to absorb the personality into his instincts. When Kusanagi Ichirou used his flattering voice to negotiate with an arrogant politician, Kusanagi Godou was there to memorize the voice into his instincts.

It was safe to say that if Kusanagi Godou had been aware of the true purpose of the skills he had learned from his grandfather, he wouldn't be so quick to use them. Or he might use them even more often… However when growing up with women who would periodically hit, beat, kick, nag and steal from him if he said the wrong thing, he was not very hesitant in using the skills his instinct of self-preservation had granted him.

As a result, instead of seeing a vengeful demon out for his blood, he was instead seeing a shy girl sporting a crimson blush which seemed to grow for each second. She was stammering and trying to look away from him while at the same trying to see if he meant it. So she was alternating between looking at him and the side, quite unable to focus on anything. Had Godou noticed her appearance, he would have thought it to be quite adorable.

Unfortunately he didn't notice her appearance, only the disappearance of the demonic female mirage that had manifested just moments ago. He actually let out a (small) sigh of relief. The menace was gone and he was safe once more. Though he did have experience with such beasts. Shizuka tended to unleash an aura of killing intent when really angry and his mother would develop a similar when drunk. What had he done to deserve such a life, to be in the vicinity of such monsters from birth?

He shook himself out of his gloom. He needed answers.

"You said that there was a reason I was here. It had something to do with me killing a goddess, right? What did you mean by that?" he asked her. She turned back to him, still as bright as a Christmas tree decoration. It appeared as if she didn't understand him at first as she started holding her cheeks in discomfort. Then she registered what he had said and started answering, although she stuttered most of the time.

"Th-that's right! Haha, how could I for-forget?! S-since you sacrificed yourself to kill a goddess, I b-brought you here to this place to declare you a Campione. Th-that's why you're here… th-though you're probably wondering who I am, aren't you? I should introduce myself. I-I'm the goddess Pandora, the mother of all Campiones! Though if you want me as an older sister I can be that too…" the last part was added in a whisper, barely audible. She was again looking away from him with a flushed face and rubbing her index fingers against eachother.

"Campione? What's that?" He had not heard the last part. He had only paid attention to the word Campione and what it meant.

"Well, it doesn't really matter since you won't remember it, but Campiones are godslayers. They kill gods and they steal the authorities from the deity they kill. Since you killed the goddess, you get her powers, get it? Though it doesn't matter really, we're out of time it seems. Bye, bye for now! Don't go making girls cry!" She said.

Godou didn't understand what she meant when she said the time was up, until the fog started getting thicker. Then the girl Pandora disappeared in the mist and all he saw was white.

**ROTE**

_December Fourteenth, 2012…_

He was in a warm bed. The covers were cozyand the mattress was incredibly soft. The pillow too felt simply divine for his head to lie on. Lying in bed felt so amazingly comfortable. It had that special feeling like when you just changed the sheets and took a shower and lied to rest and the cool yet warm sensation flowed on top of your skin. He sighed as he burrowed deeper into the blankets. So cozy… the silk sheets were unlike anything he had ever imagined. When did grandma and grandpa buy silk sheets? It must have been very recently. The Kusanagi family was not poor, but they didn't splurge on things like silk. Meh, it didn't matter that much. The feel of the soft and smooth covers and pillow were enough to make him forget such petty concerns. All that mattered was the comfort the expensive, but divine beddings he was lying in.

He wondered what he had dreamed about. It felt like it had been important, like a reminder from the subconscious or something. He had that feeling in the back of his head, that sort of unattainable knowledge just out of reach. If he was given slightest hint of what he had dreamed of it would all come back to him, but without it he would never remember it. How troublesome… oh well, it didn't matter. He didn't need to know about it, if it was important then it would come to him. Might as well get rest in the outstanding bedding he was currently in.

He turned his head over to the side in order to adjust his neck and saw…

A maid, staring at him with wide eyes….

He stared at her, she stared back.

His mouth opened, but no words came out. The maid didn't seem to notice his shock though as she sank to her knees and lowered her head. In fact, he had seen that same pose earlier from somewhere. He just couldn't put his finger on it.

"You have awaken, Your Majesty." There was a slight shiver in her voice. It appeared she was scared of something. He wondered what though; Miss Rosa didn't seem that bad so there wasn't any chance of her punishing a maid for not doing her job. "I am Sophia, a servant in this mansion. I-I have been selected to be your p-personal s-servant during your stay here. P-please tell me if there is anything you desire and I will do my outmost to pl… please you!" The woman said. The last part had not only been said in a rush, but also a in a forced and anxious tone.

Godou had no idea what was going on, but he accepted it as just a maid's duty. The reason she was scared was probably because Johan, Rosa's husband, was harsh on a maid who failed her job. Johan didn't seem like the kind of guy who would just forgive and forget. From the little interaction Godou had with the Swedish noble, he could tell that the man had been spoiled since birth and expected everything to be given to him on a silver platter. He was the epitome of everything Godou's grandfather despised, right down to his arrogant dismissal of everyone he didn't like.

Though Godou wanted nothing more than to go and insult Johan for all he was, he decided to postpone those plans. He instead turned his attention to the maid in front of him.

She was young for a maid. Most of the servants Godou had met were in their thirties and up, but she looked like she was in her mid-twenties. She had long brown hair which was tied in a tail which hung over her shoulder. Her clothes were new and didn't seem to have been worn before if the lack of wrinkles was any indication. Her uniform itself was a variation of the standard maid uniform, though it did leave a lot of skin uncovered. His father used to refer to those as French maid-uniforms. He never understood why though, most maids in France wore more concealing uniforms so why the smaller variant would be called French he would never understand. As it was, the skirt barely covered the thigh and her cleavage was almost tauntingly visible.

He might have thought a little arousing, considering he was a teenaged boy, but the way the woman kept shaking made him feel very… guilty, for some reason. It was not a very pleasant situation, not if she was afraid of him. He had not done anything to her, sure he might have sneaked a peek when she was kneeling, but any man would do that. It wasn't like he was undressing her with his eyes and making lewd comments like The Three Idiots would. If they were here then he had no doubt that the woman would leave this room terrified and traumatized.

But back to the woman, Sophia she had introduced herself as, needed to calm down and he felt awkward with her kneeling on the floor.

"Well, I'm kind of thirsty. Could you get me something to drink? Not water, but some kind of drink. And where can I find some breakfast? I'm starving." He was curious as to the traditional Swedish breakfast was. He had not had the opportunity to try it while he was in the city. He might take the chance to indulge himself at Johan's cost.

"O-of course, Your Majesty! Right away! I'll be back in a few minutes with your meal and drinks so don't worry about anything." She answered immediately, as if she was glad to leave the room to get away from him. Maybe not glad though, it seemed as if she was more relieved to leave his presence than happy about it.

Wait a minute… Your Majesty? That was an… odd title, to say the least. Had something happened when he had been sleeping? Had there been a party where the guests had been playing royalty and all the servants had to play along. He had no memory of such an event from before he went to bed and he was sure he would have woken up.

He looked down. He was wearing pajamas. Silken pajamas…. Expensive, silken, tailor-made pajamas of which he had no memory of ever laying eyes on, let alone wearing. Come to think of it, he didn't remember ever going to bed. He would have certainly remembered going to sleep in such a comfortable bed, but he didn't remember anything like that.

A sense of panic and dread was creeping into his mind as he failed to recall how he had managed to fall asleep in such a luxurious state.. What was going on?! His mind was a blur. Nothing made sense and he was feeling way out of his depth. The last thing he remembered was meeting Miss Rosa and going to confront her husband who had… summoned a god? After having a conversation with said god, they had fought and he had killed her… he had killed a god… a goddess… with a ski pole…

He was shocked by his own stupidity.

He had used a ski pole to block a spear, a divine spear! Not to mention the power the goddess had used to strike, it was like having to stop a freight train with his arm! He could still feel the vibration in his skeleton, like hitting the funny bone and getting the strange pain associated with it. And then he had answered the goddess's challenge to a joust.

_`It seems I'm an idiot´_ Godou thought to himself.

He sat down on the bed again. The magnitude of what he had done started catching up to him. He rubbed his face when he thought of the injuries he had sustained. His face had melted! He remembered the pain of it, the feeling of the heat searing the skin and flesh from the bone. He remembered the difficulty he had when breathing and the scorching heat destroying the tissue in his lungs and throat. His arms had been nothing but cauterized stumps at his armpits. But they were healed and not even a scar was on them. His face was spotless, without any melted skin whatsoever and his lungs were performing even better than before he fought… Sòl. In fact, even his old baseball injury seemed to have healed. The injury doctors had said would never heal and he would never be able to utilize it in any sport unless he wanted to experience pain every time he moved it. That injury had healed and he couldn't even feel any discomfort from moving it anymore. He felt stronger than ever before actually, and he had been a Japanese representative just a few months earlier.

Had it been because of the goddess? Before she had died she had said something, something about becoming a king?

_`Know this, Rider of the East. Thee shall not die tonight from the wounds This Radiant One has given thee, for the curse of Pandora shall revive thee and turn thee into a king. Use Tis Radiant One's power and authorities as thy shield and lance and make the world shudder at the name of the slayer of Sòl. However remember, Rider of the East, many of my kin will seek thee out to battle as well. Forge thy steel and harden thy armour, the gods of old shall seek thee out to battle.´_

That had been what the goddess had said and he had just barely heard it, even in his delirious state. What did it mean though? Authorities, what were they? He felt like he should know about them, as if he knew what they were as a child, but had forgotten about them as he grew. Authorities were… were…

_**A chariot pulling the sun…**_

He was completely still as the vision filled his mind. He knew what that thing was. Itwas the incarnation of power owned by Sòl. This had been the tool used by her over the eons she had ruled as a goddess of various forms. It had been enough to cement her place in the legends, but she had been glorious enough to manifest as several different deities of both genders.

He didn't know how long he sat on the bed, thinking of the thing he had seen in his mind. The instrument of war the goddess had possessed and he had usurped, all the intense power he felt flowing through him. He hadn't noticed it at first, but when he concentrated he could feel a large pool of energy inside his body. The sensation was alien, like finding out what a third arm felt after a surgery. At the same time, he couldn't imagine what he would have been without it. It had always been there, he thought, he just hadn't noticed it.

Reaching out for the well of power, he was rewarded with the feeling of absolute Superiority. He had never thought a human could feel so powerful. The heat he felt was like the protection he received from the stallion, but on a whole other dimension. If the stallion had granted him a candle, then this otherworldly energy was the sun.

He chuckled at the thought. This power was the incarnation of the sun so it would only be fitting to feel like it was on such a level. Otherwise it wouldn't really be the god's power, would it? After all, he had defeated the goddess of the sun, Sòl. There was no way it wouldn't be as radiant as the solar goddess herself. She had been, despite his first impression of her, absolutely stunning. He had honestly never met a woman like her and even he, in his teenaged and immature mind, thought she was the definition of perfect. He did have a few issues with the whole `trying to kill him´-thing, but he didn't pay that much attention.

The door opened and he was brought out of his musings. The same maid from before walked in, carrying a tray filled with different kinds of food, fruit and beverages. He was surprised that the fragile and meek maid he had seen just moments ago was able to carry so much without dropping it all. He was about to go over and help her when she saw him. As soon as she saw him, cloaked in the power of the solar goddess, she started shaking and the glasses on the tray started clattering. She stopped walking, seemingly frozen in place. After a few minutes of her staring at him as he wore the power like a robe, he decided to stop the power from flowing out. He had been ecstatic at first when he used it, but he didn't know any of the effects it had on people. He knew that he was safe from the negative side effects, but he had no idea if a normal human could survive it. What if it had other effects on human? Solar radiation could give people cancer and he was using the power of the sun. It wouldn't be that long of a stretch if someone died of cancer from the UV-rays he might emit.

When he cut the power, the maid seemed to visibly relax. Most of the clink from the glass and silverware stopped, though there was still a slight noise from them as she started walking. The maid still didn't look him in the eye and bowed her head as if he would punish her if she dared meet his gaze. When she reached the bed, she slowly and carefully lowered the tray until the legs of the tray were over his own. He now noticed just how much food they had given him.

There were toast, pancakes, fried chicken, soup, stew, smoked fish, meatballs, steak, different kinds of sausages, omelets and waffles. The drinks were of all kinds, from juice, milk, coffee and soda, to things like wine, scotch, beer and cider. On the side were different kinds of fruits some sliced, melons, oranges and kiwis to apples, pears and bananas.

He doubted he could eat it all even if he had all day. He considered telling the maid that it was simply too much, but the maid had already begun moving the different dishes onto a plate for him and laid it in front of him. Then as soon as she came she left and he was alone again.

Godou was visibly frustrated. He couldn't say anything and then she left without even a word. He let out a sigh that sounded more like a growl than anything else. He wanted answers more than anything. He had this power, but almost no knowledge about what was going on aside from that. He was stumbling in the dark and that was one thing nobody liked. Ignorance in general was something Godou disliked, especially since he lost his chance to play baseball and his chance to go professional. He needed answers and he knew Rosa knew something about gods, or she wouldn't have known that the tablet had been used to summon the goddess. So he was going to speak with Miss Rosa whether she wanted to or not.

He was about to get out of bed when his stomach growled. The smell of food had brought his hunger back and his mouth started watering at the sight of the mountains of edible dishes. He _was_ very hungry and he always wanted to try the local cuisine. True, this wasn't local cuisine as he doubted they could grow watermelons in the icy mountains of Sweden in the middle of winter, but he wasn't picky. He tentatively tried some of the chicken, before he started devouring the fried avian in a frenzy.

He could get some answers later. He had a stomach to fill and a table to empty.

**ROTE**

He finished his meal and took a shower. Someone had left him a fresh change of clothes when he had returned and he put them on, as he preferred normal clothing before walking around in pajamas. He also figured that if the clothes weren't his he could always apologize.

The clothes were simple, yet formal. The blue jeans showed they were meant for everyday activities, but the white shirt and beige blazer implied a certain degree of formality. Thankfully the underwear and socks were black with no designs of their own. That meant those were probably bought recently without being worn by anyone else. He felt the crimson tie was overkill, though that was most likely because he did not know how to tie the damn thing. In the end, he left the red piece of fabric lying where he found it and he went through the door to get some answers.

As soon as he stepped out of the room, he was met with two maids who stood on either side of the door, as if guarding it from intruders. He had not been expecting that and stared at the two, trying to memorize their appearance. One had black hair and blue yes while the other had blonde hair and green eyes. Both were of average European height and wore the standard maid outfit. Not the fetishist version the earlier maid, Sophia, had worn. Was there a special significance to wearing the revealing variety? Godou didn't know a lot about maid, but he knew there were several kinds of them; from cleaners and cooks to gardeners and secretaries. He didn't know if there was one that was specialized into a certain chore which required _that_ kind of clothes. Maids working in environments with high temperatures might need less isolation than normal, maybe she was that kind of maid. That could mean she was someone who worked in the kitchen, bathroom/sauna or with washing clothes. Judging by the fact that she had brought him food he was guessing kitchen.

"Do either of you know where I can find Miss Rosa? I've been wondering about a few things and I think she can answer them. Could one of you escort me to her room?" There, he said it. He didn't know a lot about his situation, but he knew he couldn't let his guard down. By asking them politely, he wasn't being rude in case his situation was unstable, but by insinuating their mistress would have to answer to him, he made it sound as if he could take it out on them if he wanted to... Which he probably could if the sudden image of flaming chariot which appeared in his mind was any indication.

They both stiffened and the black haired one gave the blonde one a glance, as if she wanted the blonde maid to take one for the team. The blonde one in turn gave the black haired one a stare which probably meant `_I__sn't your turn to sacrifice yourself for the greater good?_ ´. The black haired one gave another stare, continuing with her unspoken request. The blonde responded with her own silent answer. This continued for several seconds in complete and utter silence until it was broken by Godou.

"Look you can go back to telepathically discussing the weather or whatever _after_ I talked with Rosa. However if you can't decide which one goes then both of you will, got it?" He half-asked, half-growled. The breakfast had dulled his frustration, but hadn't removed it completely. Watching these two argue while he was left standing in the corridor was bringing the edge back to it. The power he had felt earlier seemed to resonate with his anger and rose in response to it. His form started shining a bright golden light and the hallway started shaking, as if his anger had brought forth an earthquake.

The two maids snapped their attention back to him and both of them kneeled with their heads bowed, showing their neck. It was a sign of subservience, the European counterpart to the dogeza. The one on the left, the black haired one, spoke.

"Our deepest apologies, Your Majesty! We didn't mean any offence to you! it is simply because we are not certain however if the mistress has awoken yet, as she sustained a large amount of injuries in your battle with the Heretic God two days ago. The battle destroyed an entire wing and she had a fever as a result of lying in the snow when we found her. Please, follow us and we'll take you to her." The maid said.

The two of them started walking away very stiffly. Leading Godou to the room where their mistress was supposedly resting. Godou was on the other hand shocked. He had been resting for two entire days?! True, he had almost been killed with his face and arms having been burnt off so having slept for two entire days sounded incredible insufficient. However considering that he had been restored completely after having been burnt to a crisp, he expected the unnatural healing process to have been more unnatural. So two days for the godly healing to restore him actually sounded less amazing than he thought. It also meant he had lost two days and he should have contacted Shizuka by now.

He suddenly shivered. That's right, _Shizuka_…

What the hell was he going to tell her? `Well, here's the deal: I killed a god, but in the process I scorched my face off, but it's all right! The act of killing a god completely healed my body which had been burned so badly I almost died. Also I kind of took its powers while I was at it which means I now have some kind of magical hocus-pocus pictures in my head.´ Yeah that would work… NOT!

He should probably keep the whole `God-slaying´-part a secret from his family. He had no idea how good they would take it, but he was pretty sure that Shizuka's reaction would involve biting and kicking. Though for some reason, Shizuka had been biting him less and less and she grew up. Maybe she discovered that kicking him in the shin is easier than trying to bite him in the arm. It was a good thing to; he was starting to feel like a certain Imagine Breaker and his magical index.

But how was he going to conceal his newfound talent for… for… for what exactly? He knew he had power, but he had no idea of what his power was. He also knew it had something to do with the images he had earlier, but how did he use them? Earlier he could feel his power flow from within, like a sun sends out rays. The feeling had been glorious, ecstatic even, but it had just been letting it flow. He didn't know how to form it into the chariot he had sensed in his room or the spear he had seen earlier. There was the chance that he would need professional education about his new status, as the maids kept going on about `Your Majesty´ and were trying to appease him. That implied that whatever this new power was, it meant a major change in status. Mostly for him, but whoever he was associated with would probably receive a political boost as well.

Politics, that was another can of worms he wanted to avoid. He had seen what politicians were like when he traveled with his grandpa. Aside from the stereotypical moneygrubber, there was also the arrogant old-money and ass-kissing career-climber. He wanted above all else avoid get drawn into some war for hid support where the winner would be elevated to a position above all else. He was not used to such warfare, but he had seen the effects of it. A fourteen year old boy should have no business understanding politics, but that was an unwanted side-effect of being the grandson of a famous scholar who traveled the world and a mother who used any means necessary to get what she wanted. He was raised according to the sink-or-swim method of survival.

They had been walking for several minutes now, but they still hadn't reached Miss Rosa's room yet. He was actually wondering just how large the manor was. A large part had been destroyed in the battle with the goddess, but they had been walking for so long that he thought this place was a different house altogether. The walls were of the same design, a black wood similar to ebony with engraved vines crawling across the surface. He just couldn't wrap his head around the sheer size of this place if it was connected to the manor he had arrived to. When he had first seen the mansion it looked large, but nothing this huge. Could it have been the light from the windows? If there is a strong source of light then darker objects behind it will disappear. Could the same have happened when he first saw it?

Pushing such thoughts back he once again focused on what his problem was. Ever since he woke up, his mind had wandered. He had a hard time staying in focus, as his mind kept floating from subject to subject. Normally he could stay on track, but now he was in a daze. His body was in top condition, but he had a hard time adapting to his new situation. His entire being felt off, like it was trying to guide him in a different direction than he wanted to go. No matter what he thought, all his thoughts would end in a certain subject:Sun,. His power was connected to these things somehow… and the power wanted him to find out why. It was showing him what he needed and what he had become. All he had to do was reach out and grab it, take the power and show the world who he was. It felt easy to do it, but when he tried to grasp the power a veil clouded his vision. He knew how to use the power, but he felt awkward using it. In order to activate his strength, his abilities, his… his Authority, he needed to know the conditions for them. The sun needed the knowledge of activation to be utilized. And in order to use his Authority, he would need to know how to use it well.

How troublesome. Did he need to sit in a waterfall and meditate or would the knowledge come to him automatically with time? He suspected that it was the latter, but maybe meditating would decrease the time needed. He had a feeling knowing how to use it would make people back off from trying to control him. Only how long would it take to unlock his new powers? Divinity isn't something anybody can use and he was afraid someone would use violent means to gain control over him. Aside from his well of magical energy, he was a normal teenager. Against an adult there was little he could do in terms of resistance and he doubted that people like Johan would hesitate to kidnap him in order to gain powerful pawn. But exactly how powerful was he compared to normal…people?

The energy he felt when concentrating was comparable to what he had felt from the goddess Sòl. Did that mean that he was on par with a god? His mystical power might be a match, but he doubted he would be able to trade blow for blow in a fight with a real god. He won against Sòl because she underestimated him, not because he was amazing with a spear and magic. If he was to survive another encounter with a god of Sòl caliber he would need some skill with his weapons. And Sòl had assured him that more gods would come. One does not use one's dying breath on a meaningless comment, not someone who appreciated battle like the goddess he had met. No, he was sure that a god would come for him and he needed to prepare.

A shiver went down his spine and his heart started beating again. A god would come to face him in battle. A god with centuries of experience would try and hunt him in order to kill him. What does a human do when faced with such a terrifying fact? _Humans would do what they have always done_, thought Godou, _prepare for the clash and kill the enemy._ If a god would try and kill him then it was only logical that he kill the god in turn. It was not like there were any lawyers that could prosecute him if he did kill them.

Lawyers are _Demon-spawn_ to begin with.

**ROTE**

"My apologies, Your Majesty, I would get up and greet you if I could, but my body isn't in a state where I can move it." Rosa said when he walked through the door. They were in a room with white walls and a window. He could see a clock on the wall, telling him it was five PM. The sun would start setting around this time, but in northern Sweden it was perpetual night for an entire month during the winter. So in order to see they had switched the lights on in the room, giving the feel of a hospital with its ever bright walls and smell of medicine. Though that should have been expected, this was the hospital wing after all.

When he had asked the maids about the history of the mansion they had told him about it. The land had been given to the Silverström family centuries ago for aiding the king in a campaign. Each head had added a wing or a hall to the house until it no longer appeared to be a mansion, but a small town by itself. So all residents had to use a map to get where they wanted to be or else they'd get lost. It was apparently the reason why Johan had been able to move as he wished in order to summon a god. Rosa and Johan had married for political reasons and had tried to spend as little time as possible. Johan had spent most of his time in his wing called the `_Överflödets vinge´. _It suited Johan, as överflöd meant excess in Swedish he had he had thought excess was the symbol of nobility. He disagreed, but he knew better than to argue with the dead. It was the same as beating his head against the wall.

Rosa herself was on the bed in the corner. The pillows had been propped up behind her so she could sit up and talk to him, but the image it gave didn't make him think she was in any condition to do so. She had bandages around her head and chest and her face was flushed, a sign that her fever was quite serious. The bandages covered most of her face to the point that the only parts he could see were her mouth, her cheeks and one of her eyes, the rest hidden by the white fabrics.

He felt a little guilty after seeing her condition. He had recovered from his injuries completely in two days and his current condition was even better than before he fought the goddess. Rosa on the other hand had been on the sideline and wouldn't recover until a few weeks had passed if his guess was correct. Having passed out in the snow for who-knows-how long before help arrived, she was lucky she wasn't suffering from any serious side-effects.

Now he was visiting her as she was barely able to sit upright, while he was aching to test out his new strength.

"That's all right, but how do you feel?" He asked her. Rosa smiled at his concern.

"I have a fever, but the medicine makes it better. The impact from the blast on the other hand gave me a concussion and hurt my back so it'll take me a few weeks to get out of bed, but I've been told I'll make a full recovery. It'll go even faster if I use recovery magic, but healing wounds caused from divine powers can be dangerous to heal if one is not careful. That's why it's a good idea to wait until most injuries have been healed the natural way before using any magic." She answered him in a polite tone.

It was different than how they had spoken to each other before. When they had first met she had used a friendly, but firm manner. It showed that she was the one who set the pace of the conversation and that she had been in the higher position. Now though she was polite and made no friendly gestures. Her smile was small and respectful, so unlike the one she had before which had been filled with joy of meeting a new face. It was as if she had lost all leeway in the conversation and was addressing her superior. Though that had been made obvious with the way she was addressing him as royalty.

"I see. That's one of the reasons I wanted to speak with you so quickly. I have a few questions I'd like you to answer."

"What would those questions be, Your Majesty?" Godou steeled himself. This was the moment where his greatest weakness would be laid bare, his ignorance of the circumstances.

"What happened after I passed out? How could I kill a god? How can gods exist? Why do you people call me `Your Majesty´? What do you mean by magic? What happened to me when I killed the goddess? I don't know what the hell is going on, just that my life has taken a turn for the worse because the goddess told me more gods are coming for me. So tell me what all this means!" He finished. The last bit had come out as a mix between a yell and growl, something he had never thought he had been capable of producing. He had not meant to do it, but the circumstances had made him desperate for information. He had told himself to take it slow and keep a cool head, but he was still a young boy. He was allowed to lose his temper once in a while.

Rosa sighed. It looked like she had been expecting his reaction because she started talking like she had prepared for it.

"I knew you would ask me that, Your Majesty. The problem with answering your questions is that there is so much to tell you. It'll take days to explain everything and for you this time is the most dangerous of all. I will try my best, but tell me if there is something you don't understand. Most likely there will be plenty of things you will need help with understanding." She took a deep breath and started her explanation

Godou wanted to say he had been prepared for whatever she was going to say.

He had not been prepared for whatever she was going to say.

"Magic exists and so do gods. Most of the time gods reside in their legends. When a god descends from their myths, they become a Heretic God. These Heretic Gods wield the power from the legends they have been spawned from and will affect the world in a way fitting of their origins. A god of war will incite war and rebellion, a god of the sea will cause tsunamis and floods, a god of the weather will create hurricanes and storms and a god of the sun will create droughts. They are so powerful that they affect the world by merely existing. Sinking an island or destroying a country would be nothing for them. It's in their very nature to do it and only another god can stand in their way. However, sometimes a human will challenge a Heretic God and defeat it. When that happens the human becomes a Campione, a god-slayer." She paused and looked at him with her visible eye. He was captured by her lecture, not moving an inch. The only sign of him being alive and not a well-made wax figure was the slow breaths he took and the blinking of his eyes. She continued.

"A Campione will usurp the powers of the Heretic God and those powers are called Authorities." Authorities… That word struck a chord in Godou. Yes, it sounded about right. "These authorities have no specific rule about them. They can be multiple or singular, battle-oriented or not, they can be almost anything. The only thing they have in common is that they are always a part of the god's myth and are the only things capable of killing a god. Most of the time a Campione will only receive a single authority, but there have been cases where they have received two or three, but they are so rare that they are more of an exception rather than the rule. Most of the cases though, an authority is powerful enough to permanently alter the landscape if used at full power." She seemed to shiver as she spoke. It seemed as if she had experience with Campiones.

"That is why Campiones are considered to be the supreme rulers of the lands they reside in. No matter how large the army, powerful the mage or advanced the weaponry, it will not be enough to kill a Campione. It has been tried multiple times, but a normal human can never kill a god-slayer. The act of killing a god gave them more than just the ability to use their authority as their own. Their bodies have been changed on a fundamental level. Their skeletons have hardened to levels stronger than any metal, their flesh capable of healing impossible wounds and longevity on the level of immortality. Even a sniper rifle fired within fifty meters was not enough to penetrate the skull of a Campione. The person who tried to do so became the undead servant of the one he tried to kill. Even a nuclear blast could not kill them, their bones and incredible healing factor would ensure that they would survive. Do you understand why the servants of this estate fear you? They are scared that if they displease you, they will be killed or worse." She looked him straight in the eye.

"As you killed the Heretic God my foolish husband summoned, you have ascended to the throne of Campione and ruler. If you decided to massacre the masses, nobody but another god-slayer or god would be able to stop you. If you decided to take the wife and daughters of everyone you see then not a single human would be capable of resisting. That is your right as a Devil-king. Not even witches of the highest level, like Lucretia Zola or Princess Alice, could object to your decision. As a Campione, your body produces thousands of times the magic a human could ever hope to produce. And your body even carries a magic resistance so that not even the strongest of witches could hurt you with magic or anything of that sort."

"That is the reason we call you `Your Majesty´, because you carry the power only wielded by the gods and god-slayers. Because you and the other six god-slayers are the only protection we have against the Heretic Gods who destroy our world when they descend." She finished, looking to him in order to see if he understood all of it.

Godou thought about what he had learnt. It was shocking to say the least. He had no idea if he would survive a nuclear blast, the very thought sounded ludicrous. But the part that said he had healed and gotten stronger sounded right. Usurping the authorities of a god, or Heretic God as she called them also seemed to fit what he had found out by himself. The part where he became a king did on the other hand felt weird, not wrong, but weird.

But he still needed answers.

"You said something about witches as well. What did you mean by that?" He asked her.

"The world of magic is ruled by several magic organizations. Each country has a branch in their government dedicated for this purpose, but several independent groups have appeared over the centuries. Witenagemot and Royal Arsenal are two independent organizations formed in Britain and Copper black Cross and Bronze Black Cross are two other famous groups. The Swedish government's branch of magical supervision, Samtids Ombudsmannen, is the strongest in northern Europe and oversees the actions of all mages and witches in Scandinavia, but generally respond to the British Campione Alec Gascoigne."

Godou sighed. Each answer brought up more questions. It looked like this would take a while before he could be satisfied.

With that in mind he continued with his questioning of the woman. Hopefully he would be able to let her sleep a little tonight. He really needed those answers.

**ROTE**

_December eighteenth, 2012_

"No Shizuka, I'm all right! The only reason I'm still here is because there is a blizzard and I'm stuck here until it passes." Godou said as he held the cellphone he had borrowed from Rosa. He said borrowed because he intended to return it, but Rosa had said it was a gift to the king and he was welcome to keep it for as long as he wanted to.

"I don't know how long that will take; the weather reports aren't very accurate around this time of year. The blizzard has already been going on for a week now and they say it might go on for another week or so. I'll try to make it back before next week, but I can't make any promises. I can't leave while the storm is still here. Last time I tried to go through the storm, I almost froze to death." A voice spoke on the other side of the line, though what was said could not be heard by anyone other than Godou.

"Yes, I know that that grandpa is boring to talk to, but that doesn't change the fact that I probably won't be home for another two weeks. Take care of everyone at home for me. Oh, and tell Asuka that I won't be able to help her with her winter project. She wanted to make her project on `boys who are oblivious ´, but it looks like I can't do it. Do you think you can help her instead?" The only response was an angry voice screaming form the phone. Godou cringed and held the device away from his ear in order to spare himself from any unnecessary pain. When the screaming stopped he started talking into the phone again.

"Anyway, I'll be back in two weeks or so. Try not to get into any fights while I'm gone, I won't be there to get you out of trouble this time. Bye!"

He pressed the end call button and put the phone in his pocket. It was a HIphone 5, the latest model on the market. Most people wouldn't give away the most expensive phones recently released, but the title of Campione was apparently big enough to make this seem as a paltry gift in the eyes of magi.

That was one of the reasons he was in the library and reading up on Campione and magic. Rosa's explanation had helped him understand the basics of it all, but he needed more information on the world in general. What magic organizations ruled the world, how many and who were the Campione, what kind of magic existed, these were questions that needed answers and the Silverström library held these answers.

He was currently holding a book on Campione and the page he had been reading before Shizuka had called him was titled `_Authorities´_. It told of the usual circumstances when a Campione received their powers for the first time. There were several scenarios that ensued:

A Campione might suffer from amnesia.

A Campione might be teleported to another continent.

A Campione might be engulfed in flames which incinerate everything in its vicinity except for the Campione themselves.

A Campione might…

The list of possible reactions continued and became more and more impossible. Why would killing a Heretic God make the Campione cover the country with man-eating flowers he didn't know and something told him he didn't want to know either. The only thing he wanted to know was how to use the authority. During the time he had spent in the Silverström mansion he had meditated in an attempt to figure out how to use his authority. It had been a success… to an extent.

He knew how to use the power of Sun, but he couldn't use them at full-power.

_Chariot of Scorched Heavens _was the Authority he had received from the goddess. It was split into two uses, _The Chariot_ and _Heavens Crashdown._

_The chariot _was pulled by three stallions; Skinfaxi, Àrvakr and Alsvidr. Each of them is cloaked in the flames of the sun and trampled anything in its way. The chariot itself is made from celestial steel and gold. The wheels are bladed and a scythe protrudes out of each wheel. The scythe is dressed in dark blue flame of a solar eclipse. It is not a subtle authority, as anything in its way it destroyed and incinerated. Even buildings would be decimated with a single run. Only a god or a Campione would be able to survive a charge from this chariot.

He could use the chariot to fly to the other side of the world within minutes, but in order to do so he would have to be at a high altitude in order to avoid destroying the planes. That is the weakness of his charge; the limitations of his vision. He developed a tunnel vision when he rides at full speed and cannot make sharp turns without utterly destroying the anything he might run into. If he uses this authority in a city or a town then the structures would be torn down within minutes unless he slows down. An alternative to use this authority would be to ride Skinfaxi alone. The size and destructive power is diminished, but he would gain more control and there would be less property damage.

_Heavens Crashdown_ was another combat authority, but more long-ranged. He could fire beams of scorching light which would incinerate anything it touched. It was fired from his hands and was very useful in combat.

The downside you ask? Property damage, finite supply and lack of control. The blast from the beam of light was immense and would be enough to destroy a town at full power. Each beam symbolized one of the stallions and he could therefore only use it for three rounds. The only times he could ever use it at full power would be if they fought in a dessert, deep forest, middle of the ocean or in the mountains where the civilian casualties would be kept at a minimum.

While the last authority meant he could use it to combat the Heretic Gods who came after him, they meant little if he couldn't use them in a crowded place. What if he was at school and a god came? Was he supposed to kill the god while his class watches? Absolutely not! He had to find a way to fight the gods without his authority, but the only thing capable of killing a god would be an authority.

He did receive something else from the goddess, but it was not an authority. In the legends, Freya had been the Goddess of magic and Svipdagr had been the son of a shamanic priestess. One of Sòl's aspects was the aspect of Dagr, a god connected to the hero Svipdagr and Freya. The `Gift´ (because he had no idea what it was other than that) had been `talent´ in magic arts. He wasn't a genius, but he had been reborn with abilities normally only capable of being used by Hime-miko, like [Spirit-vision] and [Flight]. It was not the power of an authority, but simply the kind of gift a goddess gave to a mortal. He had tentaviley called it [Crown of Mystical Arts] Though it was a gift from a goddess, he didn't really see any use for it. His talent was less than that of an average Hime-miko and it didn't really seem that great.

He sighed. This was a giant mess and he knew it would get worse before it got better. He had spent days in this library learning everything there was to learn. He had made surprising speed actually; despite his shock at the things magic was capable of, he was actually somewhat talented in the art. Rosa had helped him by teaching him Mystical Indoctrination and Instruction. With the learning spells, he could absorb the knowledge inside a book in minutes without even opening the book. His magic reserves and stamina made it possible to use the same spell for hours on end. So far he was still behind the average mage it seemed though. If what Rosa said was true it would take about a year to catch up on all the terms and calculations. If he had tried to do it without the Instruction then he was afraid he would have given up. Fortunately, since he was using the spell himself and was not having it used on him, the information he gained was permanent and he had no need to cast the same spell again.

Out of all the things he had learnt the identities of the other Campiones were the most important. Depending on where they lived he might come in contact or conflict with them. Two of his seniors seemed especially interesting, even for god-slayers. Salvatore Doni and Lu Hao had slayed gods with martial arts alone, not with magic artifacts, but with their fists (supposedly) and sword. If he couldn't use magic or authorities in a city, couldn't he learn how to use a blade instead? In his battle with Sòl he had fused the Heavens Crashdown with her spear, could he do it with a sword as well?

He put the book down and walked to the door. The Silverström family was old so it shouldn't be impossible for them to have some kind of weapon lying around. Maybe a spear or a sword used by their ancestors in a battle, kept as a memento of their courage. If he asked Rosa if he could borrow one or two then he might be able to use it to fight without destroying Tokyo in the process. Oh, the joy of being a genius!

He opened the door and came face-to-face with Sophia, the maid who had thought he would use her as a sex-toy. It had taken a long talk, but he had finally convinced her that he wasn't going to use her for sex so she had no reason to fear him. Ever since then she had been incredibly helpful in teaching him magic and history when he came across a problem not explained in the books.

"Sophia, could you take me to Miss Rosa?" The maid titled her head in puzzlement. When he needed help with magic he would just ask her, but since this was about the heirlooms of the Silverström family he needed to ask the head of the family, not the servants. After explaining his reasons they walked to the hospital wing. A walk which took ten minutes due to the distance between the library and the hospital wing.

Damn rich people… why can't you stick with normal houses?

**ROTE**

_December 24, 2012_

"Uh, Miss Rosa? What are all these?" Godou asked. It was Christmas Eve and he had been looking forward to calling his family and wish them a Merry Christmas. Unfortunately he had been asked by Rosa to meet her in her study. He thought it was about the favour he had asked her a few days ago, but he had been woefully unprepared for the scope of her actions. He had expected a few swords or maybe a spear. Not this…

In front of him were dozens of swords, spears, bows, axes, halberds and suits of armour. All of them had been stacked neatly into rows on wooden shelves and the armour had been assembled into statuesque suits. The armour itself ranged from plate to scale and leather. The entire collection of medieval weaponry had traces of magic on them, ranging from cutting, alchemic and anti-rusting.

Rosa looked proud of her vast piles of sharp tools as she gave him a proud smile. She picked up a spear and looked at the tip. Was it the weapon of a close relative perhaps?

"When you asked me for a weapon I had no idea of what suited you. We had no pure Japanese weapons in our armory and most of what we had was old and not suitable for a king. That is why I had my subordinates search for useful weapons and smiths capable of forging close-combat arms of war. In the six days we had, we have amassed an impressive collection of swords and polearms ranging from western to eastern. So go on and choose which one you want, Your Majesty. These are all for your use." She laid the spear back on its rack and sat on the chair by the desk.

Godou had no experience with a blade or a polearm. Most of what he knew came from animated shows and movies. That was why looking for a good weapon in this room filled with different sorts of medieval arms was quite the task for him. He would have preferred a Japanese blade, but he had no idea on how to use one. He had spent a single day in the kendo club before he had changed it to the baseball club because his friends had. Thinking back he cursed himself for doing something so stupid, if only he had stayed for a few more lessons and he might have known enough to actually use a blade instead of hoping for it to help his authority. As soon as he gets back to japan he was going to join the kendo club. Maybe get one of The Three Stooges, the one in the kendo club, to introduce him...

He spent the next hour looking over different varieties of swords. He felt a sword was better suited for him. While the motions and stances for swordplay were different, the length of a baseball bat was similar to that of a sword. It would be easier for him to get used to a sword than for example a spear or axe. While club might be a good substitute for a bat, he felt it wasn't very compatible with Heavens Crashdown. A sword had a sharp edge and would be easier to use and he could get lessons for it no matter what country he was in.

From gladius, claymore, zweihänder, rapier and dirk to Jian, Dao, hook swords, saif, kris, and katana, he tried all of them. Some felt decent, like claymores and katanas, while some felt less so, like kris and rapier. It seemed as if he preferred straight, single-edged swords that carried some weight more than stabbing weapons. In the end he settled on something similar.

It was a Miao Dao, a Chinese sword similar to a katana. The hilt was of dark wood, wrapped in red silk. The guard was a small disc made of bronze or a similar metal without ornaments. Shiny steel was the only description the blade could have. It was single-edged with a slight curve which was almost unnoticeable. The fuller stopped halfway across the blade, giving it a slightly designed look. It came with a scabbard made of the same wood as the hilt, black with a small tuft of red rope and the end.

While it was a recently forged sword, he doubted it was meant for decoration or for practitioners to use. This sword had been forged for combat. He turned to Rosa.

"Where did you get this?" He asked the lady of the Silverström family. She gave him a sly smile.

"One of our agents hired a korean bladesmith to forge a sword worthy of the gods. The result was the sword you now hold. It was made using the finest of steel and tools strengthened with magic. Though it was not made with traditional methods, the pain and hardship the smith went through in order to forge this blade shows the magical properties imbued in the steel. When he heard he was forging a sword for an Asian Campione, he assumed it was for the Chinese king Lu Hao. That is why it is a Chinese sword." She answered.

Godou looked back to the sword. She was right about the magical part of it. Despite the fact that it was a young sword made in less than a week, it carried magic inside of it as if it was as old as a century. Older swords tended to develop a sentience or a thirst for blood as they grew older due to the fact that they absorbed small amounts of magic each time they were used. That was why a collector would sometime feel as if their houses are haunted; the spirits of the items would affect the owner. But for a few days old sword to carry energy in it meant something extraordinary must have happened when it had been forged, like a blood sacrifice or ritual.

"Exactly what hardship did the smith go through?" He asked the woman with a dark tone. If a person had been sacrificed for the blade then he had no desire to hold it. Rosa grimaced as she started to answer. It was apparently not a happy tale.

"Before I answer, Your Majesty, are you aware of the story of Gan Jiang and Mo Ye?" He nodded; it had been one of the tales he had used Mystical Indoctrination spell to read. A bladesmith had been ordered to forge a sword, but in order to do that he required qi in the form human tissue. The wife of the smith throws herself in the furnace, as a sacrifice is needed to create the imperial blades the emperor wanted. The man used the steel and qi to forge two swords named after the husband and wife. He didn't like the implications the story brought to the discussion. "Well, in order to forge the sword you hold, all the mages in in Scandinavia donated their hair and small grafts of their skin to use as qi-resources. The blades from the legend were used as the steel as well. The hardship the smith went through was melting the swords his ancestor had forged. As a result, you now hold the greatest sword forged by human hands in the last three-hundred years. The only ones capable of standing against the sword using pure specs would be the swords forged by the Saint Rafaello."

That sounded less gruesome than he had imagined, but still time crueler than what he had wanted. He had not wished for a man to destroy his family's greatest achievement just for a blade he was not sure he would be able to use to its fullest and one he was sure wouldn't last long against the likes of Heretic Gods. As great the blade was, it was not anything special compared to the spear of a goddess. It seemed almost a shame to let it be used like this, to use it with a technique which might destroy it after a single attack. He could feel it in the in his hands; the pressure it gave off was lower than what he had felt when he used the ski pole with the power of the stallion.

Even though he thought it could not stand up to a celestial weapon on its own, if he used the stallion or Heavens Crashdown and channeled the power into the sword then it would be a deadly weapon. Now all he needed was to learn how to use it. Yay…

He shook his head. He had more important things to do.

"Thank you for your help, Miss Rosa. Though I can't use a sword at the moment I will learn how to use this sword with pride." He thanked the lady and walked out.

Now he needed to call his sister, she was probably angry that he hadn't called earlier.

Wait… isn't the time difference quite large between Sweden and japan? If it was five o´clock in Sweden then that meant… Aw Fuc… He picked up his phone and switched it on.

_`You have eight missed calls´_

Shizuka was going to kill him.

*Ring Ring…

Forget gods, his sister was the one thing he needed to prepare for.

"Hello, sister dear…" Godou began before the screaming on the other side of the line commenced.

He needed to think his plans more thoroughly. If his sister can still make him feel fear on the other side of the earth than he was royally screwed if went up against a god.


	3. Steel arrives

_AN-_

_I have created a forum on this story where you can discuss and give ideas on Heretic Deities. I have already made a list of the gods he will defeat, but one of the slots is still open. It's the slot of a random god, meaning it can be anyone you want it to be. The only condition is that it's a relatively unknown god and not someone like Odin or Zeus. If you can provide a background story which tells of how many gods they are made of would be great._

_Also in the you can discuss the various deities I have used. I will also post omakes which didn't make it into the story, but were too great to throw away. There is also a Poll on my profile now about who should be in Godou's harem. I'm having a rough time deciding so your help will be appreciated. Leave your suggestion of deities in the Forum and vote on the Poll and I'll see if I can fit them into the story._

_Although I have to say, trying to write the thought process of a deranged deity of steel was harder than I thought. I never want to write another [Steel] again. Yikes!_

_Also, I know I will be getting a huge amount of flames about the way I ended the chapter, but I will make up for it in the next. So until then my friends!_

**ROTE**

_A Campione- A Godslayer- is a supreme ruler._

_Since he can kill a celestial being, he can therefore call on the sacrosanct, divine powers wielded by the gods._

_A Campione- A Godslayer- is a lord._

_Since the power to kill a deity is in his hands, he therefore looms over all the mortals on earth._

_A Campione- A Godslayer- is a devil-king._

_Since of all mortals who live in the worlds, none can assume a power to match his!_

**ROTE**

_January 5, 2013_

_Japan…_

Right now, Godou was not feeling like a king or ruler. He felt silly, stupid even. If anyone had seen him, he was sure he would have been mortified and gone to hide in his room in shame. That was how much he hated what he was doing.

He was practicing swordsmanship.

Most people wouldn't think practicing with a sword would be so shameful and Godou would normally agree with them. The only thing he didn't like about sword practice was the fact that he had no idea of what he was doing. He held the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi in his hands and practiced a downward slash. It looked fine to him, the sound of it slicing through the air giving him reassurance that it was a good strike.

Then he remembered that he had no experience with a blade whatsoever and it could have been the worst strike in all of humanity's recorded history for all he knew. That brought back the sense of silliness to its titanic proportions.

He had returned to japan two days ago and had thought over his situation quite carefully. Gods would come after him; history had proved that to be inevitable. All Campiones who had been recorded had fought a second god within months of the first one. That meant he had a few weeks at most to prepare for the clash of divine forces. If Godou used _Heavens Crashdown_ or _The Chariot_ in a city as large and well-populated as Tokyo, then the death toll would be immense beyond measure. His only chance to defeat a deity without sacrificing an area the size Ikebukuro would be to channel his authorities into smaller attacks. He had done something similar when he had fought Sòl, but back then he had simply used all of its diminished power to attack without regard to his surroundings and the mansion. The blast had been magnificent, but he needed an attack which was more focused and controlled.

That was why he was practicing kendo in the backyard. If he simply swung his sword with all his might then the energy of the solar goddess would obliterate everything that wasn't divine in its origins. The same problem occurred to most baseball players when they first started; they swing as hard as they can and hope they hit the ball. As they gain experience they start hitting the ball with more accuracy. Later on they can predict where the ball is heading and can adjust their swing appropriately. He assumed the same thing would happen with swinging a sword. If nothing else he had grown accustomed to holding the blade in his hands. At first he gotten blisters from holding it for hours on end, but his advanced healing had made it possible to resume within the hour.

He had decided to call the sword Totsuka-no-Tsurugi, after the sword used by Izanagi to kill his son, a fire god. He thought it fit, as it would be used by a Campione who slew a god of the sun, the ultimate fire. Though it had no resemblance to the blade from legends, he thought it was a good name for a sword of a Campione, a godslayer's sword.

Though the story of its creation did disturb him a little, it was the consequences he had a problem with. He had originally tried to keep his existence a secret as the information of a Campione would incite the various organizations and Campione to contact and fight him respectively. Now though, all of Scandinavia knew there was a new King and he was sure the entire world had figured it out by this point. He had to learn how to use an illusion spell in order to board the plane to japan, but he was sure dozens of mages and witches had discovered the fact that a mage of titanic powers had left the Silverström mansion, the mansion a Heretic Deity had attacked weeks earlier, and boarded a plane to japan. Which meant people already knew a Japanese person had become a King.

So he had decided to create a fake identity, the King-persona so to speak. It had been surprisingly simple and a little disappointing. He had first crafted an illusion using the witchcraft and mundane clothes to create a disguise. He had also worn a scarf which covered the face from being he was still the height of a normal teenager people would think it was strtange to see him all alone, but he had used simple Hypnotize magic to make anyone not capable of using magic see him as an adult. Of course anyone capable of using magic would know he was a Campione and wouldn't try to stop him in case he wanted to buy something only adults could. He had decided to call this persona "Yamato Takahashi" after one of the most common names in japan (Takahashi) and the ancient name for japan (Yamato). It was such a strong disguise that he doubted even Hime-miko with a strong sense of spirit vision would be able to see through the magically-infused mask. Though he needed to brush up on his fashion senseas he looked very suspicious in that get-up.

That brought him to his use of authorities. When he had crafted his alter-ego Takahashi, he had noticed just how powerful magic could be. What if he could utilize it in other areas?

That had been his next plan and depending on the success of his battle with the deity coming for him, he might be able to set it in motion relatively quickly. He had already made his body-double set up an account in the national bank of Japan, under his new name of Yamato Takahashi. Thanks to Rosa, he had been able to purchase an entire building close to his house in case he needed to get there in a hurry and opened it up as his new headquarters. . The only downside was the condition of the building. It hadn't been renovated in decades and required some serious renovation before he could start working in it.

He might have overused the magic to establish his new persona, but it was for a good goal. He would have a a place where he could hide the existence of magic from Shizuka and he would have a base for the magic-related bussiness at the same time. His plan would later evolve, but he did not have the energy or the time to invest further in the project.

He did know that the History Compilation Committee would start watching him now. They, along with every magical organization around the globe, would have wanted to know the nationality of the new Campione. He could imagine the fear they felt when he boarded a plane to japan and created an account under a Japanese name.

He expected to have his shop approached by a few of their agents within a few weeks. His operation "Establish identity and base of operations" had taken two days and had been rushed, but he doubted the HCC would take any action which wasn't planned for with meticulous care. They would most likely send a mage of extreme competence, but could be replaced by dozens others at a moment's notice.

He went back to practicing his swordsmanship. He could afford to wait for them, but his skill with a sword could only be raised with experience and practice.

**ROTE**

While Godou was training, the History Compilation was in panic. Every mage, witch and Hime-miko was terrified of the Campione who had been born just weeks ago. Sayanomiya Kaoru, the chief of the Tokyo branch, sat in her office with Amakusa Touma and was trying to formulate a plan to deal with this new scenario. A folder filled with pictures and documents was on the table and contained Amakusa's report on the godslayer.

"So, exactly what do we know about Yamato Takahashi?" The young crossdressing woman asked her older subordinate. Amakusa sighed as he gave his report.

"Close to nothing and what we do know is likely to be false as well. We can only speculate, but our agents tell us that that a little more than three weeks ago, a Heretic Deity attacked the manor of the Silverström family. After a battle which destroyed an entire wing, it disappeared. After the local mages investigated, they found a presence similar in strength to a deity, but it originated from a human with Asian features. Their experience with the Black Prince made them keep their distance, but they were able to discern that the human was youthful in appearance though no exact age could be stated. The newly-born Campione stayed within the mansion and mostly read texts in the library and practiced with a sword. The agents we managed to smuggle into the mansion discovered that the books he was reading were about the basics of magic and daoist arts. On the second of January, he boarded a plane heading for japan and for the first time we were able to take a picture of the man." At this point Amakusa slid a photograph across the table to his superior.

Kaoru picked it up and took a look at it. The picture had been taken at an airport and the photographer had taken it from his pocket, if the low angle was any indication. It showed a young man dressed in a black trenchcoat. It had been unbuttoned to reveal a black shirt and a red tie. A red scarf had been wrapped around his neck and mouth, an ordinary precaution during the winter months when disease was common. He wore a black fedora on his head which, combined with his scarf, concealed his face enough to give him a ninja- or mafia-like appearance. He wore black dress pants and a leather belt, even his shoes were of high class, seemingly made of some reptile's skin. While she had to admit it was an attractive look which would make girls her age swoon at the dark and mysterious stranger (even she felt a semblance of attraction to the younger man), it did not give them any indication of identity.

"When he arrived he set out to rent a car from a nearby car-rental agency and drive it to the Bank of Japan. He had obviously used magic in order to convince the owner as no sane man would rent a car to a boy that young. At that point he opened an account under the name of Yamato Takahashi and used funds aquired from the Silverström family to buy the ownership of an apartment building. We assume he will use as his base of operations. His exact purpose for the building aside from the obvious is unknown and why he wanted it to be in that particular district is likewise unknown." He opened the file and gave his boss several papers, showing the results from his investigation in the government's sources.

"We have searched all databases in the country, but no Yamato Takahashi had been in Sweden or Europe at the time. We think that the name is falsified and his real name is unknown. Nobody has seen him leave his new home to visit any relatives so we have no idea on where to start with our investigation. He didn't even exist a month ago and the only thing we can say about him is that so far the only thing we can say for sure is that he is Asian and is as secretive as John Pluto Smith." That was the end of his report. More was written in the folder on the table, but it was more about the possible authorities the Campione possessed and the addresses of his properties. Nothing important, but it was required nonetheless.

Kaoru felt a headache growing. She had taken the post less than three months ago and had proved to be capable at handling the workload, but this was a crisis of unimaginable proportions. Of course the HCC had a back-up plan in case of a Japanese Campione being born, but the odds were so small that it hadn't been improved in the last two-hundred years. Nobody had bothered to change it since it was of minimal concern. The current, or former, King who ruled over Japan had been Lu Hao and it had worked splendidly so far. The woman hadn't bothered to come over to the island nation and in her eyes it was still called Wakoku. She was not the true ruler of Japan, but her country was the closest one to it and therefore she was automatically given sovereignty over japan, but now a new King had been born and she had lost he right to rule over japan. How would she react? Would she fly across the ocean to conquer the land back or would she leave it alone? The actions of a godslayer were impossible to prepare for as they are illogical existences by simply existing.

"First of all, we must make an attempt to contact him. What are his intentions by returning to japan and what will he do now that he has some kind of Headquarters? These are things we must know, but we can't demand he tells us his plans. So in order words, a friendly relationship must be established first. According to the photo, he would be around my age. As a King of such a young age he will probably have more sexual desires than the likes of Voban and Lu Hao and in his new position he could demand anything he wants without repercussions. Therefore the easiest way to limit his destructive actions is to make his lover a member of the Committee. She would be our bridge between King Yamato and the HCC. The problem is still the lack of information. Whoever our agent is, she can't approach someone she knows nothing about and if she fails the risk that she dies is quite daunting. Especially if he has had time to use his authorities and get drunk from power." Kaoru summarized the situation and action. It was a variety of the back-up plan, but instead of a harem of Yamato Nadeshikos they would try to send a single woman.

"Once we have a good relationship with King Yamato, we try to find out his goals and authorities. Doing so will help us plan for future clashes with Heretic Gods and Campiones. His history must be known as well, it will help us calculate his movements and actions." Kaoru stopped as she saw the look Amakusa was sending her. "What?"

Amakusa gave her a sad smile. "Exactly who do you think the Committee will send to be the lover of the King?" he asked her. Kaoru blinked, and then recoiled as she understood what he meant.

Was she going to be sent as the sacrificial lamb to slaughter? True, she was competent enough to broker such a deal and her social skills were good enough to make even straight girls join the dark side, but she had no wish to try her luck on a _GODSLAYER_! Forgetting the fact that most of her taste veered towards the fairer gender, she was not sure if she would be capable to make a Campione, a being who defied reason, fall for her even if she was used to flirting with men. As it were, Kaoru had spent most of her time playing games or making the girls in her school call her Onee-Sama and her only experience with men her own age was minimal at best and most of the time they thought she was an androgynous boy.

The other alternatives were Seishuuin Ena, Mariya Yuri and maybe Renjou Fuyuhime as a last resort. The two former were younger, barely fourteen and had no experience with boys, while the latter was her age, but incapable of using magic. No matter how she looked at it she was the first alternative when it came to be offered as the toy of the Devil-King. Ena might be chosen due to her extraordinary personality, but her age and lack of contact was still an issue. Fuyuhime was incapable of using magic and sending her to the campione would be an insult to the king, as if saying they didn't respect him enough to send a competent messenger. On the other hand, Kaoru was a gifted hime-miko and a known lesbian and there was plenty of animosity towards her for that little fact. _`The heir to the most prestigious family was a person with little chance to carry on the bloodline?! What an outrage!´_ was the most used excuse to get her kicked out of the Committee, but the real reason people didn't like her was the leeway she was given in terms of partners. Gifted Hime-miko were expected to marry magically gifted males and had little choice in who to fall in love with. For a Hime-miko as gifted as Kaoru to be free to indulge in her pleasure was a privilege many envied. Getting her sent to the devil-king as a possible toy was their small revenge.

Of course there might be a chance that the king wouldn't care of such things, but without any information they couldn't take such a risk. Campione were people who defied the belief of men, but even they were kept to a certain level of humanity. While it was impossible to predict the behavior of a devil-king, they had to bet on the option which had the highest chance of success. If a male became a Campione then the one to approach them would be female and vice-versa. The plan was that a Campione would grow attached to the agent and the chances were higher if the agent was of the opposite sex. With Campiones as Lu Hao, Voban, Salvatore Doni and JPS that kind of plan was useless, but this was Japan's first Campione ever so the HCC would pull out all the stops.

She felt sick as felt the burden of her position come down on her. She held her stomach when the fear made it curl and coil and she was afraid she would regurgitate the contents of it. Her breaths became forced and she had to hold back a sob. To think, just a few months ago her greatest worry was if she would have the time to play the new game she had just bought after her date. Now she was most likely to be served on a silver platter to the King of Japan.

She forced her stomach to calm down and looked at her subordinate. He had noticed her panic, but had made no indication to reassure her that it would be fine. He was a trained professional and while they had been on conversational terms since she had taken her place as the Tokyo branch-chief, he knew that her position was fragile at best now. Trying to tell her it was going to be `Okay´ would only make it seem like he was going to help her from this situation. It would give her false hope and make her count on him to save her and although Amakusa was a loyal ninja, he was no knight in shining armour. She was on her own and they both knew it. Amakasu was not going to risk his neck for her.

"I'll wait until the elders of the Four Families have made their decision before I make any effort to contact the King. It will take the elders about two days to come to a solution which gives me time to write a will or… something. Call me when they have reached an agreement." She was about to stand up and leave when a knock on the door made her look up. Before she had time to say `Come in´ the door swung open and a messenger walked in. He wore the traditional clothes of a Shinto priest with an emblem on over his heart, signifying the symbols of the Four Families. He didn't even bother addressing Amakasu, but instead looked straight into Kaoru's eyes. She felt a shiver run down her spine.

"According to the decision of the Elders of the Four Families of Sayanomiya, Seishuuin, Renjou and Kuhoutsuka you, Sayanomiya Kaoru, are to answer the summons of the four elders and meet them at the Elder's chamber immediately. You may bring the file you have on the new King of Japan. The messenger who brings this message will escort you to the chamber." He said in a monotone voice which betrayed no emotion, though she could see the spark of smug satisfaction in his eyes. He obviously knew that Kaoru was a lesbian and that little fact had rubbed a lot of people the wrong way, especially people from branch families who had no chance to reach more prestigious positions and were more or less forced to marry people they didn't knew. Kaoru being sent off to be turned into a living toy of a man of unknown character must be the greatest revenge and opportunity the branch families have seen in decades. This messenger must have heard at least part of the discussion and knew what would happen to her and if his reaction was any indication, then it was not good.

After a moment of collecting photographs and files, she picked up the folder which read "Yamato Takahashi" and left with the messenger. She made sure to walk in front of him so he could not turn back and see her eyes starting to tear up and her lips quivering.

After ten minutes and passing through several security checkpoints, they arrived at the chamber. The messenger tried to enter as well, but Kaoru made sure to close the doors behind her, a small revenge for the pleasure he took in her misery. His look of frustration and anger at the insult was enough to bring a small smile on her face before her situation once again forced her to school her features.

The Elder's chamber was a large, circular hall with a chair in the middle of it. It resembled the coliseum of Rome in design actually; the arena where the gladiators would sit was where the summoned would sit or stand depending on whether it was a trial or a summons. The seats of the chamber were elevated as well, but instead of there being hundreds of seats for spectators, there were instead four ornamental platforms covered with pillows where the elders would sit. The whole chamber was underground in order to be harder to find and made from the rock it had been cut out of. So besides from looking like a darker version of the coliseum it also resembled the batcave in terms of darkness and dampness. She could hear a small *_drip, drip*_ every few seconds.

The chamber was also very rich in history as it was first made by Kaoru's own ancestor during the seventeen-hundreds as a way to hold secret meetings and store contraband. Eventually when the Sayanomiya family founded the HCC the chamber was no longer used for its original purpose, but for the court and council of the Committee. Thousands of mages and Hime-miko had been judged here and now, sitting in the chair which the defendant would be chained to, Kaoru could feel the remnants of their despairing spirits.

"Sayanomiya Kaoru, are you aware of why we have summoned you here?" A deep baritone voice asked. It was the elder of the Kuhoutsuka family, Kuhoutsuka Genzo. Out of all the elders, he was the lowest in rank. The Sayanomiya was the highest in pedigree with Seishuuin being second and Renjou third. Kuhoutsuka had come in decades after the Renjou and had even then been a relatively young family. That was why the Kuhoutsuka family took every chance to further their own ambitions. She guessed he was the one to push hardest for Kaoru being the lover of King Yamato. Out of all the families, the Kuhoutsuka family would benefit the most from her losing her life.

In the world of magic, having a competent heir to continue the bloodline was an important factor to a family's appearance. The Renjou family took a hard blow when Fuyuhime was discovered to be incapable of using magic. They were still above the Kuhoutsuka, but nowhere near as much as they should be or will be until they have produced a capable heir. If Kaoru were to lose her life or position as a branch-head, the Sayanomiya family would lose appearance and influence, both in affairs of magic and mundane. The influence lost would most likely quickly be absorbed into Genzo's sphere and he would be able to assert himself more in the Committee.

"No, Kuhoutsuka-Sama. I was only told to bring the file on our new King and appear before you as quickly as possible. May I ask why you saw it prudent to summon me in these times of stress?" Her voice was respectful, but aloof. It was a tone she had mastered in school in order to impress the ladies and appear as a more masculine figure. It worked in formal events such as these because it did not give away her fears and she managed to slip on a mask to protect her true feelings.

It was the Head of the Seishuuin family who responded. Ran Seishuuin was a strong lady, one who did not tolerate nonsense. At the same time she was kind and generous, as she demonstrated when she adopted the illegitimate son of her late husband. Out of all the elders beside her own grandmother, Ran was the one she liked the most.

"We wanted you to tell us what you thought of the young King. From what we gathered he would be somewhere around your age and he appears to live quite close to the area owned by the Sayanomiya. What do you make of him?" the matriarch of the Seishuuin clan asked the heir of the Sayanomiya clan.

It wasn't a very subtle maneuver, but it wasn't mean to be. The head of Seishuuin had made it quite obvious what the intentions of the Elders were and it had been her way of trying to warn the young woman. While the effort was most likely futile as there was really only a single option available to the HCC at this point, it still gave Kaoru reassurance that she was not alone in this mess. She gave the elders her honest opinion of the mysterious man.

"While he is of unknown character and origins, I can say that he seems to be quite clever for someone who has not been active in the world of magic for more than a month. He has already established a base of operations within two days of his return. He also seems to use a blade for combat similar to Italy's King of Swords, but clearly not with the same amount of skill. On the other hand, he is apparently a genius with magic as he was capable of manipulating a plane filled with people into believing he was an adult with a branch of Hypnotize we are uncertain even a mage could shrug off. So though he is less skilled with a blade, he makes up for it with magic. Other than that I can't say much about his personality other than he values his privacy and has a good sense of fashion." There wasn't really that much to say, he was a complete unknown.

The elders looked around at each other, though Kaoru could only see the one in front of her and the two to her sides (Sayanomiya, Seishuuin and Renjou) because the fourth (Kuhoutsuka) was positioned on the platform behind her. It was yet another example of the fourth family having less power than the rest of the families.

Genzo, obviously irritated at being not the one in control of the conversation, took the pause to speak up.

"So this is a wonderful opportunity to find out more about our young lord. Since you are a Hime-miko close to his age as well as a talented Hime-miko in general, isn't it obvious that you be the one most suitable to make first contact with this Yamato Takahashi?" The words he was using were meant to be used as compliments, but the tone and meaning he was using them as meant nothing less than insults.

Kaoru was one of the most talented Hime-mikos to be born in the current age as she was not only gifted with powerful spiritual capabilities, but she was still physically fit enough to be a powerful martial artist. In fact the only witches and Hime-mikos capable of matching her in spirit vision and mystical arts were the ones who suffered almost crippling side effects like Mariya Yuri or Princess Alice. It was not an understatement to say she was a contender of the title of "Premier Hime-miko". For Genzo to undermine her talents as a talented Hime-miko in general would be to say the ocean is wet.

The second thing he was insulting about was not her, but the King. To say `young lord´ and `this Yamato Takahashi´ was a very insulting way to speak of a man who was by all means his king and ruler. The very fact of being a Campione meant that the man deserved their outmost respect, regardless of whether Kaoru was loathing the fact that she was going be handed over to him like a present. Genzo was deliberately undermining the King's authority while at the same time telling Kaoru to sacrifice herself to appease the godslayer. That was just adding insult to injury! She felt she couldn't take it anymore.

"Genzo, I hope you didn't mean to imply that Yamato-Sama was an undignified and unworthy character just now. If you did, then for the good of the country there will be consequences for your words." Said the person in front of her.

It was her grandfather and current head of the Sayanomiya clan. He was a man who resembled the picture of an emperor to a T. He had long white hair which he used a golden needle to keep in a bun and a white thin beard he stroked ever so often. He was dressed in the pure white garbs of a Shinto priest, but gave off the feeling like he was from royal blood. A powerful figure who had ruled the majority of his lifetime and who had seen the atrocities committed during both World War 1 and 2 on both sides. He had seen the crimes against humanity the Japanese had committed in Nanking and had been one of the strongest drives to punishing the perpetrators. He had been one of the first on the scene after the bombings in Nagasaki and Hiroshima. The Sayanomiya family had been one of the largest organizations at the time and spent a fortune helping the wounded, but Sayanomiya Daichi had personally carried the victims to safety and medical aid. He had personally dug families out of the rubble and healed them with recovery magic. As a result, the strain of helping so many people and using so much magic had left their marks. He had been the first one in the family to have red hair, but it had gone white prematurely and his body was spontaneously wrecked with the pain of crippled nerves and organs. The only reason he had survived so long was because of his immense talent at magic, something Kaoru had inherited along the crimson hair and good looks.

Genzo sensed the anger behind the voice and immediately backed down. "Of course not, Sayanomiya-san! I simply meant we knew almost nothing about him and we needed to make contact with him in order to make a proper profile of him. How could I possibly imply anything unsavory about Yamato Takahashi-sama?! Why, the very thought is preposterous!" The old geezer was really laying it on thick there, though it was understandable. Kaoru had been on the end of one of Daichi's famous lectures and she learned to never lift her skirt in public ever again… wait, was that the reason she always wore boys outfits?

…

Dear god, her entire sexual standing had been the result of a five-minute lecture…

Back to the elders, Daichi took control of the meeting.

"Kaoru, as we have no solid information about Yamato-sama, it is vital we make contact with him before any of the unaffiliated organizations or sorcerers are able to establish a contract or ally themselves with him. It is unfortunate that I must ask this of you, but your task is to find the King, establish a relationship with him and report back what you can find out. It doesn't matter what you become to him, whether you are seen as a friend or a lover, we leave it to your discretion." It was the last part that gave Kaoru hope.

While Genzo had been hoping she would try to become his lover, an action that if found out would most likely end in her torture and/or death. A friend is less personal and distant which would make the revelation of her working for the Committee less of a betrayal. He might still be angry, but the odds of him killing her on the spot were relatively low compared to her earlier assumption.

Genzo, on the other hand, looked like he had swallowed a lemon. Her death would have aided his powerplay immensely, but now his plans would have to be adjusted accordingly. The chances that the Sayanomiya clan would still have a competent heir just went up by several notches. The risk of sending an heir to a Campione was and the Campione killing the heir was large and most families did not like to gamble. It was why all the families in the Committee did not volunteer their daughters when given the chance. By changing the condition from "Lover" to "Friend", the risk was lowered. This was most likely a scheme Daichi had come up with on the spot to outmaneuver Genzo without letting the Kuhoutsuka gain more influence. A splendid plan, if Kaoru could say it herself.

"Of course, Grandfather. I swear I won't disappoint you." she answered him. The day was looking good.

"Good, but remember to exercise caution. He is an illogical being so using logic of mortal men is doomed to fail from the very beginning. Also…" the last part was quiet for some reason so Kaoru had to use Enhancement on her hearing to pick up what he said.

"…If you do find yourself in a favorable position then I just want to say that I want some Great-grandchildren soon. A boy would be great."

Kaoru was not ashamed to admit she blushed at the implications of that particular statement.

**ROTE**

At the top of Mt Fuji stood a dark and evil figure. It was a man, but a wretched man he was to his core. He wore armour over his body and though it would make him strike a powerful figure if worn properly, each piece of metal and leather made him seem all the more deranged. He wore the Kusazuri and Suneate of a Japanese samurai, but the chest was covered in plate armour of western knights. The sleeves were made of pelts usually worn by the northern Vikings and the sandals were clearly of Greek design. On his back was a sword of unknown origin. It was the length and shape of a katana, but the hilt and pommel showed they were meant for the swords of barbarians of the north. The scabbard however was made completely of metal and was jeweled over the entire length of it. Despite the obvious mixture of cultures being displayed over his body, it was his helmet which was the crownwork of his kaleidoscope of armour.

It was the average helmet of a European knight, an armet made of steel with golden details engraved. The difference between the traditional version and this hybridized one were the Japanese Kabuto crest sitting in the front and the Greek helmet-plume on the back.

In most cases, seeing such a ridiculous outfit would make people laugh, however even if people saw him then they wouldn't laugh, even if their lives depended on it. Anyone who saw him would be terrified by the insane bloodlust and rage permeating the air.

Somewhere, in this Far Eastern land was his prey. He remembered this place; he had spent centuries here, as several figures of legends.

Legends of steel and blood…

Oh, the bloodshed that ensued as he roamed the battlefields, as the soldiers used his steel to massacre one another. Oh, the agony his steel and curses brought to the cowardly kings and emperors who sought to dominate him and make him their slave.

The soldiers cursed his name, but at the same time adored him for his work. The Crippled One. The Cursed One. The Brilliant One who brought simple iron to steel of perfection.

No man could claim to fame as he could. No human could curse his madness into the weapons he forged as he did. No deity could claim to know the sweet songs the metals he forged sang as he drank the blood of his enemies and used it to harden the blades.

No, a fool could wield a blade. A demented one could cut with a blade. A whoreson could hammer a hot piece of iron or bronze and turn it into a sharp metal edge.

He was not a fool. He was not demented. He was not a whoreson like the kings of old or the emperors of wounded prides.

He was the true deity of [Steel]. Heroes had used his swords, his spears, his iron and blood. They used them in grand tales of valor and death. They slew serpents and men. They slaughtered armies and cities. From the mightiest of kings to the most wretched of orphans, his blades knew no distinction.

Though he had no favorites, he praised the swords he forged which dare to bare their fangs against the rulers and lords. The False Elite, the Disgusting Hypocrites, the Lying Filth! Royalty and Nobility had many names, but he knew their real titles.

In his face they sang praises, but behind his back they spread rumors of hate. The same man who worshipped his creations and sang of his skill, tried to ban his steel, his blood, his very soul! History had twisted his myths, from the warrior he was to the simple sword smith. But he knew the truth, he knew who he was. Oh, the rage and hatred which was forged in his very core when he heard of the treachery. To think, a mere man would try to erase his very existence by replacing him in the world. The audacity, the shame!

No, he was the greatest of [Steel]! He knew every sword of creation, every spear of battle, every axe of execution, every scythe of reaping. From the first time the metal is lifted from the earth as a part of Mother Earth to the point the rust and decay breaks it in battle and swing. He felt the joy the blades sang as they were born from the wombs of their mothers and the exhilaration of their first kill. It did not matter what the whore Guinevere said or what the Savage Lancelot thought. The King Who Manifests at the World's End was not the strongest or the greatest of [Steel]. It was Him!

No deity of [Steel] could fight without his swords as their partners. No deity of Mother Earth could claim to be a more suitable parent for their child. He was the father of all [Steel]. He was the King of all [Steel]!

Yet, this… Bastard child of Epimetheus, this Vermin borne from the womb of the Slut Pandora, had slain a deity and held a blade of his blessed forge?! He thought to wield the edge of his prized children?! Arrogance, Arrogance, ARROGANCE OF THE MURDEROUS FILTH!

He could tolerate the trickster of the Mediterranean Sea. He could tolerate the bitch of the Yellow River. But for a Vermin less than a year old to dare take his arms to use in combat? His ego was larger than any he had ever encountered.

It was made worse by the fact that he had killed two of his most beloved children to forge the illegitimate son he held. Two beautiful children, his son and daughter had been twisted into an abomination worthy of the Labyrinth. How could a person do such a thing?

So he had traveled after the monster. He had traveled to his old lands of ice and wind, a place where steel lived short lives. The whoreson had fled, taking his deformed edge with him. So he pursued…

The lands of Kladenets had been left without rest. The fiend must be scared….

The lands of Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegar had not even been touched. It was true; the vile menace was running from him…

The lands of Trishula had not been disturbed for the enemy was on the run in fear of his vengeance…

The lands of Keris Mpu Gandring were empty, he must be getting close.

The lands of Ruyi Jingu Bang had been left in a hurry for he was chased by the greatest of [Steel]!

And now he had found the godslayer! He had been hiding in the lands of Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi and was practicing his twisted techniques. Was it not enough that he had murdered his family and took their bodies away?

He decided, then and there, that the punishment for this insult, this blasphemy, this abomination would be a slow and crippling death.

Just like his had been in the cold of winter.

"Muramasa-Sama?" A gentle voice brought him back from his thoughts. He turned to the source of the deceptively regal tone.

She stood a few meters away from him, clad in a crimson and olive green kimono. Her hair was a pitch black and in a Hime cut. Her eyes were red and the pupils were narrow slits, like eyes of a snake. Her skin was pale, but not sickly like a corpse. She appeared like she had not seen sunlight in decades. She could only be described as petite, for there was no denying her beauty as her appearance was more mature and enticing than any woman her height and proportions had any right to be. She appeared to be a princess of ancient japan with her jewelry of gold and richly decorated clothes, but she was not human. He could sense divine energy from her, more than any human he had ever encountered possessed which meant she was not human at all. That meant two other things; Divine beast or Divine ancestor. And since she wasn't a rampaging animal destroying the landscape, she must be a divine ancestor.

"That is indeed my name, witch. State your title before my patience runs thin. I am not in the greatest of moods." He replied. The Divine ancestor smiled and bowed to him. At least she knew her station.

"My apologies, Muramasa-Sama, I did not mean to offend you. I am Kushina, the lady of this land and the Divine ancestor who governs the magic of Japan. I hope I am not bothering you, M'lord." The woman with the youthful appearance of early teens said with a respectful tone. Her voice carried the light and rich tone of silk flowing across one's skin and had he not been a god of [Steel], he would have fallen prey to her melody.

"You bother me by not telling me your purpose in approaching me. I am not like the mindless humans who are glad to be in your presence. Your voice carries no tune which I have not heard before and your beauty, while a sight for sore eyes, does not entice me more than the sloppy seconds of a rusty blade should." He spared no expense in his insults. There wasn't any sanity in him left to know the difference between them and compliments.

The divine ancestor showed no outward response other than a slight pause. She then continues the conversation.

"I came here with a proposition for you, deity of [Steel]. You seek the godslayer in this land, do you not? For any god to let a godslayer go is to let the murderer of their kind live and prosper. I know you feel the thirst of vengeance against him, even though I do not know your reason for it. My offer is that I will aid you in your quest for revenge, but in exchange, I ask you to aid me in my own. There is a deity I wish to kill, but my powers are abysmal compared to his. If I were to strike him alone, then I will surely perish and let him prowl without realizing the consequences of his actions." She spoke in a steady voice, despite the anger she was letting out in the forms of magical energy.

Muramasa sensed her anger and felt a sense of camaraderie. They had both been denied things they desired, but with this cooperation they could regain some of their pride.

"How could you possibly aid me, witch? You are but a shadow of your former self and if what you say is true then I would be battling not only a godslayer, but a god as well. It sounds like you would gain more than I would. You must have something else to bring to the table." He had seen through her deceptions. A witch, even one at the level of Divine ancestor, could never trick a god.

The woman only smiled. "Worry not, M'lord. My intentions are pure and I will aid you in your battle against the godslayer and the god. Though I cannot engage them directly without losing my life in the process, I can gather information about them and their powers, as well as their position and defenses. Do not worry, I can contribute to you goals." She said, letting her voice regain its euphoric tone.

"You know my name, but I have never met you before. You call yourself Kushina, but I have not heard of a Divine ancestor by that name. In fact, last time I traveled to this Far Eastern land there was a different ruler here and it was a god of [Steel], yet you say you govern this place. Tell me who you really are and what your goal is and we have an agreement." He was pleased by the look of shock on her face as he spoke. She recovered quickly enough, but at least he had managed to break her façade.

"Tell you my… is that all, M'lord? You wish to know what my goal is?" she asked. Hah, the ever-present song her voice carried had disappeared. Though her voice was beautiful in itself, it seemed the melodic tone it brought with it was magical in nature. That meant her shock must have been deeper than what she had liked to admit.

"Yes, that is all. I am not a complex man, nor am I a man vain enough to wish for trinkets or knowledge. All I need is the reason you would rage against the one you wish to kill. The only reason I want your identity is because I can't trust your words otherwise. So your real name and purpose enough for me to use you as my subordinate." He stated with a superior tone. Despite his insanity, he was apparently still a deity worthy of [Steel]. His arrogance knew no bounds.

Though for the witch who had been negotiating with him was visibly put off by his sense of superiority. Her eyes narrowed at the word `subordinate´ which he had used without regard of the animosity Divine ancestors and Mother Earth goddess held towards deities of [Steel].

"Be that as it may, my name is something I wish to keep a secret. The god in question has put a spell on it so he knows if a divine being uses it. Therefore please refer to me as Kushina as it is the only name I possess which is not under control by him." She clenched her delicate fists in order to contain the anger which was threatening to burst out.

The male deity shrugged, his armor clinked as he moved. "Very well, but what of your goal? Surely you can tell me which god you wish to slay and what he did to you? A name he might control, but a purpose is different. Speak, Witch, or our deal is off and I shall slay you now!"

"You are correct in your assumption, but do you not wish to find out more of your quarry? I shall tell you the name of my prey after I have informed you of the condition of yours." She told the deity as she waved her hand. Instantly a portal to the Netherworld appeared. It appeared as a swirling pool of darkness, something a human would avoid with all their might if they saw it, but the Heretic Deity didn't bat an eye at the use of dangerous magic. A Divine ancestor did not possess the capabilities to slay a deity after all.

"You are lucky I wish to know more of the godslayer of this land, or I would have sliced your head off for your insolence. Inform me of his name and I shall help you in your quest." He told the witch as he started walking for the portal.

The petite woman smiled as she knew she had won their little negotiation, despite his arrogance. "His name is Yamato Takahashi, M'lord."

And they were gone.

**ROTE**

_January 10, 2013_

He was currently in his apartment and reading instruction manuals on kendo stances. He could just use [Instruction], but there was a certain sense of achievement in reading it with his eyes. Though he spent most of his time practicing, he did feel a certain sense of boredom. The seven days since he had returned from Sweden had passed without too much incident. Aside from more practice he finally joined a club again.

_(Flashback)_

"_You want to join the kendo club?" exclaimed Takagi._

_It was in the middle of lunch break and Godou had approached Takagi, his classmate, about the possibility of him joining the kendo club._

"_Yeah, I've lost the urge to play baseball since I got hurt, but recently I've thought kendo was kind of fun when I went to it." The fact that it had been a single lesson was left out of the conversation. "Since you are a member of the kendo club, do you think I could join soon? Like right after school to practice a little?" _

_Normally he wouldn't be so desperate for sword practice, but in the time he had spent training solo he had noticed the slow progress he made. Sparring with an opponent, even someone as inexperienced as Rosa, had taught him more than anything he had learnt alone. Martial arts in general gave more results when done in pairs since fighting was the reason martial arts were created. So practicing with other, more experienced practitioners would give him a much needed boost in skill._

_His sword skill had still not advanced beyond amateur level, despite him using [Instruction] magic on the books on kendo, Iaido, Iaijutsu and Battoujutsu. It seemed that even if magic was used like an omnipotent tool, it still had its limitations and some things just needed to be gained with experience. Coincidentally, the school had a kendo club in danger of being closed and they needed at least another member in order to reach the five-member quota. _

_It didn't even take a second for Takagi to grip his wrist and drag him to the clubroom. _

_(Flashback)_

His recently bought flat had also gotten renovated (Finally!) and the decrepit apartment was livable again. He had hired a professional agency to restore the sixteen-storey building to its former glory, but so far they had only managed to make his apartment on the top and his shop on the fifteenth floor inhabitable. Which meant he could sneak out at night and go over his plans in his apartment whenever he wanted to… that and it felt a little like his very own batcave. A batcave with a skylight…

All right, he had gone a little over the top with the design of the place, but who could blame him?

Now that he thought about it, was he becoming spoiled? He would normally never have indulged himself in architectural designs just for the sheer pleasure in having them, especially when he never had the time to admire the apartment. His sword practice took up so much of his time and learning magic takes up the rest, it was a miracle he had enough time to interact with his family.

Speaking of magic; he had finally learnt how to enhance his body! [Enhancement] magic was normally only used knights and similar mages since it was a requirement in battle, but it was a relatively difficult spell to learn. Each body part required specific calculations depending on the complexity and volume of the limbs. A leg for example was easy to enhance, but simply enhancing the thigh or lower leg was not possible. An enhanced leg would rip itself off from the body at the hip since the strength would be too much for the mundane hipbone. That's why people learnt to enhance the entire body, but due to the magic required, emphasized on the part they needed to use at the moment.

A good explanation would be; if a runner needed to run faster he would enhance his thighs and lower legs 100%, his feet 90%, his hips 70 %, his stomach 50 %, his torso 30%, his arms and shoulders 15% and with his neck and head enhanced 5-10%. While this enabled mages to fight on levels impossible by most humans, it was in the end an incomplete magic. Due to the difference in power the rest of the body which is not fully enhanced take damage. Tendons tear, muscles burn and bones crack, unless the whole body is enhanced fully then the body will break down after an hour or so. That is the unfortunate truth about [Enhancement]. It was also one of the reasons it was perfect magic for a Campione.

A Campione possesses thousands of times the magical power of mages and witches. Their bodies are also on a whole other level than human beings as well, ranging from their steel-like skeleton to their abnormal regeneration and superior strength. For a Campione to use [Enhancement] seems unnecessary, but for Godou it was too much of an opportunity to waste. Add the fact that his lessons in kendo would only make his fighting style even more efficient was almost too much for him to wait until he could use his authority in battle.

That little reminder made him lose his good mood. He had only been able to use _Heavens Crashdown_ inside Totsuka-no-Tsurugi in practice until now and while the results looked promising, there was no way to test if he could use it effectively without destroying a building. Maybe he could try and find an old abandoned building or factory and see if he could try and control it?

Nah, with his luck he would destroy the building and the surrounding neighborhood. It would be safer to wait until he fought a Heretic Deity or something of that level.

As soon as the thought had come to him he realized how bizarre it sounded. When did fighting a GOD qualify as safe? Had he really lost so much of his personality, to think using an untested technique against a being who symbolized humanity's desire for power as safe? Something wasn't right about his current state of mind, but he just couldn't figure out what it was that had changed when he had become a Campione. He felt the same mentally, but he no longer feared the prospect of fighting divine beings.

Was this merely one of the side-effects of becoming a godslayer? Did all Campione feel that the gods humans worshipped were not gods any more than he was? When he met Sòl and fought her he had felt that she had been superior in every way imaginable. He had not met another deity after that, but ever since he did not feel the same way. He still thought she was a great warrior and skilled with a spear, but he also didn't feel that she was a queen compared to him.

Damn it! This uncertainty was pure torment. He wished there was a Heretic Deity around so he could just go craz…

Just as he thought of going out to find someone to test his authority on, he suddenly sensed a large amount of divine energy and a large steel sword shot through the window and almost impaled Godou where he stood. Only his reflexes from baseball and his Campione body saved him from having the four foot of sharpened steel cut his insides to small strips of flesh. The blade flew past him, only managing to nick his shirt, and embedded itself in the wall.

The sword was a large Flammenschwert with an elaborate hilt and pommel. The hilt was made of silver and gold, each vein of precious metal overlapping eachother until the handle looked more like a network of metal strings. The pommel was one large ruby encrusted in gold to keep it in place. The blade itself was wavy as a Flammenschwert should be. The only difference being it was larger than any sword he had seen, over two meters long and several inches wide. The guard was clearly not meant for decoration. It was made of four large hooks, each a foot in length and the tips were barbed in order to cause as much pain as possible.

This blade had not been meant to be wielded in close combat. It was meant to be thrown and hurt the target as much as possible, only killing it after it had lost too much blood. This was divine weapon, but most of all…

It was cursed.

It screamed for blood, the same way a crowd screamed for violence at a boxing match. The malice reeking form the dark blade set his body on fire and his entire body was immediately filled with magical energy. Despite having dodged the makeshift projectile and coming out unscathed, he still felt like he had been injured. Was the curse really that strong or was it something more?

Of course, the blade was an authority! The only thing which could affect a Campione, except for internal magic, was the authority of gods. In other words, a deity had found him and judging by the method of attack it was a deity of [Steel].

It might have been the adrenaline rush he received when he dodged the sword, it might have been the divine power welling up inside him or it might simply be the curse of the sword, but he thought it might be the opportunity to test his powers out.

"**Godslayer who cowers in his castle! Hear me now and hear me well! I am the father of the bastard steel you have corrupted. For your crimes, I have deemed you craven and weak. The land you dwell in has sheltered you, but it shall now pay for its crimes and as punishment for harboring you and the filthy god of steel all this time it shall perish in a fit of madness. If you are not the spineless murderer as I say meet me at Fuji-no-Takane. You may at least die a warriors death yet."** A thundering voice was heard… from the sword. The ruby on the pommel glowed with each word said, but stopped once the voice was finished.

It gave no indication as to who the deity was or why it was after him. He guessed it was simply because a Heretic God would always attack a Campione, but he didn't understand what he meant by the [Father of Steel]". He had never read about a deity who referred to himself as that. There were many who gave themselves silly titles like [Victorious] and [Almighty], but father of steel didn't really have that much prestige compared to them. It was most likely tied to its origins as an early steel deity who had been assimilated into European folklore, judging by the German design of the blade.

"Well, since he gave me such a nice gift it would be rude of me not to answer the call." He walked to his closet and opened it up.

When he had decided to disguise himself as Yamato Takahashi, he had decided to do it enough to make an impression. That is why his second persona had been so strong as well. Kusanagi Godou was a teenager who went to school and practiced kendo. Yamato Takahashi was a king who ruled Japan. As such he had to look the part of a monarch.

So after a few minutes of changing clothes he was finally ready. He had put on a pair of black cargo-pants and a black sleeveless shirt. Over his face was the red scarf he had worn on the airport, tied tightly around his mouth and nose, but letting his eyes free to see. The rest of the scarf he let flow freely behind his back. He was about to leave when he remembered it was nighttime in the middle of winter and he was going to Mt Fuji, a very tall mountain. After a moment of consideration, he grabbed a jacket and black cap to keep him warm.

He went into his room and picked up his sword. The Miao Dao he had called Totsuka-no-Tsurugi had been an excellent weapon for training, but now it was time for their first battle. When he touched the handle, he noticed that his hands were shaking. He held his hands in front of his face, seeing how his hands, now calloused from weeks of intense sword practice were indeed shaking like a leaf. A shiver ran down his spine and his stomach felt cold.

Was he afraid? Was he finally feeling the fear most humans would feel if faced with a god who wanted to kill them? He clenched his fists and unclenched them again, the shaking lessening somewhat. No, he was not afraid. He didn't feel fear at the thought of deities. He was afraid that he would be disappointed. What if the deity he faced would not meet him at the top? What if someone else fought him first? Had he felt fear when faced Sòl? No, he had not. He had been irritated and stressed, but not once had he been scared of the goddess.

With that in mind he climbed up on the roof and activated his authority.

_"I bring the sun from the Eastern lands. Fire burns ever so hot as the flames are stars! Trample the rebels and hunt the prey, a bright light shall burn the skies!"_ he chanted and the divine magic he emitted increased tenfold. Before him a large fire grew until it took the shape of a chariot with two large stallions pulling the large metal vehicle. The stallions were cloaked in bright flames which emanated from their mane, tail and hooves and when they breathed they released large sparks. Their eyes themselves were like miniature furnaces as flames rose from their eye sockets.

They were the two divine steeds under Sòl's command, the stallions who pulled the chariot of the sun across the sky. Skinfaxi had been their prototype, but he had summoned these two because he wanted to save him as an ace in the hole. They had no name as Skinfaxi, Arvakr and Alsvidr were the horses Dagr and Sòl rode, but Godou did not ride on them. His mounts did not have names yet, not that he knew of anyway. he did know the twin horse had more power, but the lone stallion had speed. In case he needed more speed he would add the lone stallion to the chariot and get the full power. The stallion was also the only one he had experience with riding bareback one so if the chariot was destroyed it wouldn't do to have wasted his only weapon.

Now that he looked at them closer, they did seem like something you'd find in a horror story; burning eyes, clad in flames and larger than any horse he'd ever seen were pretty scary factors. However, despite somewhat fearsome figure they gave off, Godou felt the excitement rolling off them. They were delirious with joy, for their master had summoned them to battle for the very first time. They would get to carry him on the battlefield and trample everyone in their way for the sake of their master.

He had not expected the horses to have a mind of their own, but when he thought about it, Skinfaxi did seem to have a lot of personality for a mindless beast back in Sweden when they had fought against Sòl.. Speaking of Skinfaxi; now that he had activated [Chariot of The Scorched Heavens] he could sense the lone Stallion inside his head despite not having summoned him into the world. Perhaps it was because it was the first time he had activated the chariot fully, but the presence of the stallion who aided him in his battle against Sòl was comforting, like having a friend who backs you up in a fight.

"Are you ready to trample some divine butt?" he asked his ride. They were ecstatic in their reply; rearing and neighing their response. He grinned with them, their eagerness for battle being transmitted to his mind. He went to the chariot and got on it. The massive thing was made from some kind of dense metal and was decorated with silver, gold and kind of black fur on the places where you would hold on. There was also a coat made from a large beast's pelt and he recognized it as the cloak Sòl had worn when she had used this authority.

Feeling the softness of the fur, he swung it around his shoulders, knowing it would fit him perfectly. It settled around his shoulders, concealing his sword while keeping him warm at the same time. He smiled at the thought of the deity he had received the cloak from. Somehow he knew that the cloak hadn't been there for him to wear if she hadn't enjoyed their duel.

He grabbed the reins and flicked them and was surprised at the speed they took off. It was like time around them had stopped and they were the only ones capable of moving.

"So this is Godspeed, huh?" he said out loud. He had known they could use Godspeed and he also knew this was nowhere near the top speed either, but even a fraction of it was enough to amaze him. This was faster than any plane or car would ever go and he was flying across Tokyo like he was a tourist. Even if they stallions had been visible to ordinary people, they would never have been able to identify the shiny blur which raced across the night sky. It was then he realized just how lucky he was to have become a Campione.

"Well, our foe is waiting for us and I intend to find out why he felt he could call me a coward. What do you think?! Shall we go and greet him?" He yelled to the horses. They could only neigh as they sped off to Fuji-no-Takane, The Peak of Fuji, leaving a trail of flames in their wake.

As they climbed in altitude he could feel the lack of oxygen take effect. His body was still human so he was still susceptible to harsh changes in environment, but the climates would have to be at the level of vacuum for him to be damaged by it. As he was, he could climb Mount Everest without dying or be crippled. He still had to admit it was uncomfortable though, a note for future reference.

When he arrived at the peak, he didn't see anyone. The stalls were empty due to it being night and all the shops had been closed. He landed near the edge of the active volcano, knowing that the chariot was immune to natural heat and looked around. He did not disembark as he preferred having his strongest authority close to him in case the deity tried to ambush him. Though a deity such as Sòl would rather die than do something as dishonorable as an ambush, he had no idea what the enemy this time was like. He was especially wary since the enemy had tried to snipe him with a surprise attack using a cursed blade.

"You know, for someone who called me craven and cowardly, you sure do like hiding and skulking around in the shadows yourself!" he yelled out, hoping the taunt would hurt the pride all deities seemed to have in spades. It worked it seemed.

"How dare you accuse me of hiding? Like I was some filthy weakling who would use the shadows as my ally, Bah! It is you who are a coward! It was you who defiled the steel of my children!" The voice from before responded, but in a lower tone and without the magical interference from the sword obstructing it. It was no longer thundering, but merely deep and loud.

"I don't know about defiling, but weren't you the one who threw a giant sword at me? Think of the innocent people who could have been hurt! Annoying deities such as you should just come in person!" He yelled back. Although he was happy at the chance for a fight, he was put off by the tactics of the god. Attacks on his person he could deal with, but sniping was really annoying to deal with. It was the same with fastballs like the one which had injured his shoulder.

"Silence, whelp! Someone as ignorant and disrespectful as you has no right accusing me! Just take your judgment like the rest of your kind should!" The deity yelled back, though this time he seemed to have taken action.

Godou was saved once more by his reflexes. He had been listening for the source of the voice, but it had changed position every time it spoke. It was the last sentence which had become louder and clearer that alerted him of the attack.

From above came a black blur at high speeds and would have bifurcated him had he not brought Totsuka-no-Tsurugi up to block. In fact even though his body was that of a Campione and he had used [Enhancement] at full power, his knees almost buckled under the strain. Since he had been standing on the chariot at the time, the force was transferred onto wagon and two small craters were made under the metal wheels.

Using his enhanced strength he pushed the deity away, careful not to cut himself on the blade he held. When the god started being pushed back, he roared with all his might and tilted the blade so most of the opponents strength was aimed to the side and tried to kick the deity in the stomach. It saw the move and jumped back and landed twenty meters away, an impossible move for a human, but child's play for a god.

"You know, when you spoke to me before you called yourself the [Father of Steel], but so far you have shown no evidence of being a God of [Steel]. Who are you?" he asked the assailant. Now that he had taken a look at him he could see how strange his appearance was.

Armour from almost every culture was proudly displayed. Greek, Viking, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Egyptian and European knight-armour and those were just the ones on his front. He had no doubt there would be others on his back. Just as he thought there wouldn't be anything more bizarre about the god's appearance, two large wings extended from the back of the deity and folded themselves, like the wings of an angel would. Large and black, it was maybe more fitting to call them the wings of a fallen angel.

"You don't know what you're talking about boy!" the deity continued as Godou tried to remember the names of the angels he knew. "I am the only one who can understand the true beauty of [Steel]. The deities you know of are simply users, people who wield a sword simply because they can. You too wield the blade because you could, not because you deserve it." He said in a bitter voice.

Oh, was this a dethroned god perhaps? A deity who had been treated badly despite the element of [Steel] was not common; most gods who were hated were those of Mother Earth-category. Who could this be?

"Since we still haven't' introduced ourselves I guess I'll start. My name is Ku-Yamato Takahashi and I was recently reborn as a Campione. Since you are a deity of [Steel], I guess it's customary for introductions to be made." Hopefully he'll be able to at least get a name before the battle started. If he could get a name then it would help him discover his weaknesses.

The deity grimaced. "You, godslayer, may call me Muramasa. Now my blade will introduce itself; _Juuchi Yosamu_!

A dark wave exploded from the blade and traveled to Godou. In response, Godou drew Totsuka-no-Tsurugi and swung.

_Three days later…_

People were still in shock of the small eruption of Mt Fuji, but they were beginning to calm down. Experts had investigated the volcano and had found out that the pressure which had slowly been rising had dropped significantly. The talks of evacuation had been dropped and routine had returned to the city of Tokyo.

However they had no idea of what had really happened that night, in fact no human knew what had happened. Only three people knew.

A god of Steel.

A Divine Ancestor.

…And a Campione…

* * *

**If you skipped the AN then i will just say this: There is a forum on my profile where you can discuss about the deities in the story as well as suggest some of your own. There is also a poll on my profile about who will be in Godou's harem. Check it out!**


	4. Steel and Sun

**Hey guys!**

**Well it's time for another chapter, isn't it? This is the first chapter of the new arc in which Godou starts getting used to the life of a Campione. I have also decided that Godou won't be fighting any gods soon, at least not for a few chapters because the plot would move too fast. I need time for the evil witch to reveal her scheme first. Although, considering her story, she might not be an evil with as much as I will make her out to be.**

**Anyway, the battle in this chapter was one I had trouble writing. As some of you might know, I have tremendous difficulty writing battles. So trying to write the clash between Campione and God took its toll on the quality. **

**The god I wanted to show was this one. He was not the most powerful of steel, but he deserved his name. Those of you who do research who he was, then you might realize what I have planned for him. The authority will be awesome. **

**Also one of you wrote that the only way he'll be getting good at fighting would be to slay a deity of [Steel]. I don't find that to be true. Godou will not be the same great swordsman or martial artist as Doni or Lu Hao, but he is a warrior instead. A warrior doesn't have the same skills, but he is instead a fighter. Even if he doesn't cut a water drop into two as practice, he will still be able to fight Doni with a sword using his instinct and tactics. Yes, if you put them in a room and don't let them use magic or authorities then Doni will win most of the times, but they aren't fighting like that. Godou is less skilled, but he can still fight. It's hard to explain what I'm saying without spoiling too much of the plot I have planned, but try to imagine why Godou was able to become a Campione in canon. He was a tactical genius and was a warrior in battle. Imagine what he could do if he actually practiced with the same fervor as Doni or Lu Hao. **

**Well so far it seems like the harem will be like the canon. I guess that was to be expected; the other characters received very little character development compared to Erica and Liliana. The good news is that in the next chapter on of the original harem will be introduced!**

**Remember; if you have any questions about the deities or want to suggest a new deity, visit the forum on my profile. Also remember to vote on the pool about Godou's harem.**

**2014-04-08: ****I have changed a large part of the authorities now as he only has one: [Chariot of Scorched Heavens]. This way i'll be able to give him more Authorities without turning him into a powerhouse. Ironically, in the Campione!-verse, Campione are the very definition of Powerhouse. With this I'll be able to work with it better.**

* * *

_There was once a blacksmith who worked in the royal castle. Each day he would forge amazing things for the king and be happy that his art was being of use and made the life of his lord better. From crowns to rings, armour to swords, jewelry to inventions, he was a genius and artisan of the highest caliber._

_But one day, the king changed. He became obsessed with war and conquering other lands. The blacksmith had been more than happy to supply his lord with the blades he needed so he had not noticed the insane glint in the king's eye._

_Then one day he had been taken to a tower to forge a sword. This was a strange demand since he usually worked in his own smithy, but his loyalty to the king was absolute. He brought his tools to the tower and began his work. He hammered the steel, tempered the steel, forged the steel and then started over again to show his king the true skill of a master blacksmith. The result was a sword capable of destroying a hill with a single strike. Satisfied he showed it to the king._

"_This is truly a masterpiece, but it is not what I wanted. Start again." The king told him._

_The blacksmith had been disappointed that the king had not seen the skill and effort poured into the blade, but resolved himself to create something even better. And so he started again to forge a blade worthy of a king._

* * *

Whoever said learning how to wield a sword was a waste of time in this day and age had obviously never tried to fight a deity on a divine chariot with the power of gods. Because the only reason Godou had not lost his head yet was because of the time he had spent learning how to use the blade in his hand.

They had been battling for five minutes now, and though Godou was not tired, he could feel a sense of dullness in his arms. Every strike the deity unleashed was like a freight train and it took all of his enhanced power to block it. The bizarrely armored god was powerful and flexible at the same time even to the point of being able to keep up with Godou who was riding [The Chariot] at topspeed.

Luckily, the steeds pulling the chariot were intelligent beasts and he didn't need to hold the reins for them to realize that the giant monster which resembled a mix between a bull and several snakes was trying to kill them and they needed to dodge it. They were faster than the Chimera-like monster, but it was larger than anything he had ever seen so even if they dodged the direct attack, the wind would almost blow them away. The thing was so large it could stand in the crater of the volcano and it would still look like a snug fit. So far only the upper body had been shown, the legs and hips hidden in the crater. If he hadn't been too occupied by the melee with the [Steel] Deity, he would have snorted at the resemblance the bull and mountain had to the cliché of a stripper coming out of birthday cake.

But in order to show you the reason the battle was currently going the way it was, we need to go back a few minutes in time.

_At the start of the battle…_

"Juuchi Yosamu!" Muramasa yelled as he swung his blade. The black wave sliced through the air and spread out, intending to devour Godou as he stood on the chariot. Every stone in its way was sliced, every pebble cut and every flake of snow was slashed into a thousand pieces. So powerful was the authority the god invoked.

The power of the authority, the power of the blade was at its peak now in the night of Tokyo for the deity had named its sword, Juuichi Yosamu, 10,000 Cold Nights and they were in the land of its origins, were a at the coldest part of the lands and it was the darkest night of the year. Such was the power of the deity.

Godou did not know the power of the authority nor did he know of its origins. All he knew was that the darkness was attacking him. So he drew his sword and swung.

_"Let there be no darkness beneath me. Let there be no shadows above me. Let the prey which seeks to hide themselves in the night be slain! I who Hunt the Abyssal ones, fear my wrath!"_ he chanted. The incantation for [Heavens Crashdown] came to him with ease. He had at first feared that his power would berserk and incinerate everything around him, but here where there were no major buildings or humans, he could let it rage freely.

Unlike [The Chariot] which was best described as happy and innocent in nature, [Heavens Crashdown] was like a wrathful wreaker of punishment. Using it bolstered Godou's feelings of rage and battle and he was afraid he would hurt civilians in his post-battle wrath. Now as he let the brilliant light of the sun's flames burst through the sword, he felt the desire for combat flow through his body and urge him to step forward and smite the enemy. He most likely would have if he hadn't seen the result of the strike.

The pitch-black wave of darkness met the white strike of pure light head-on and the darkness was burned away in an instant. The beam of celestial fire which was the [Heavens Crashdown] continued to the deity and engulfed him in a large explosion.

To anyone watching the battle it would have seemed as if the armored figure had been vaporized. Indeed the blast had rocked the mountain and melted the rock where he had stood. No being, Heretic Deity or not, should have survived that attack.

So why did he have a feeling like it had failed?

Just in case of it being a trap, he took a hold of the reins of the chariot. If the deity called Muramasa had prepared something beforehand then it would be a good idea to prepare to bolt for it.

"Did you know, Godslayer, of the nature of smithing?" the same voice as the deity had said. He was hiding again. Perfect. "Most people think it's just hammering something into something else. The art of being a blacksmith is so much more. We are inventors, warriors, artisans, tacticians and strategist. As the technology of your kind increased, you forgot what creating was all about." Oh, great! He was going into a monologue!

"Let me show you a true creation of the forge!" All of a sudden, the mountain quaked. The ground shook and Godou had to hold onto the chariot in order to stay on his feet. He flicked the reins, telling the stallions to get off the ground and into the air. The horses complied and took off.

Just as the chariot was in the air, an enormous hand burst through the crater. It was a grotesque feature, disgusting to even look at. Most of it was made of some dark metal, overlaid with bronze. But in some places the metal had been covered with flesh which made it seem like someone had opened a human arm up and replaced the bones and skin with pipes and plates. It was also burning as the lava which had been stewing inside the volcano ate at the figure which was emerging.

The hand gripped the edge of the volcano and started pulling itself through the stone floor. Slowly, but surely the image of a beast emerged. It was just as disgusting as the hand. The head was that of a bull, if you could call the mad and burnt piece of flesh a head. Its horns were large and black, with each piece being larger than a train cart. The body on the other hand was female, from the pregnant belly to the breasts; there was no denying its feminine features. The last remarkable parts of its body were the snakes which crawled across it like gravity had no effect on it.

A monster no matter how you looked at it, but he was wondering what the beast was called. Muramasa had not been a hero of godly proportions. He had been a swordsmith, a famous one, but not on the level of becoming a deity. That meant the real god had a different name, one associated with the forge and blacksmiths. One of European origins who had traveled across Asia in order to reach japan and become Muramasa. Was there such a god? In Europe there were the Norse pantheon, the Greek/Roman, Christian, Celtic and several more but less known, like the Slavic. There were lots of them which had ties to the forge, the most famous one being Hephaestus, a deity who had already been slain by the guy from Italy.

This monster was a clue as to the identity of the god. As he was obviously famous in several cultures due to the different kinds of armour, this divine beast was likely also a collection of beasts. A female Minotaur who wore snakes as clothes. A sword which releases the night. A blacksmith who claims to be the [Father of Steel]. So few clues, yet he couldn't find it in him to think it was annoying. This was nothing like the battle with Sòl, where the slightest mistake might spell his doom. Back then he had been the weakling of the match, the one who was predicted to be killed.

This time it was not the same. He was fighting the deity with his own powers, his own authorities. He would defeat the Heretic God, even if he brought out his volcanic pet.

"You might as well give up now, godslayer! You will never defeat my creation, not the divine beings born in my forge. Even if you stole the power of my kin, my Pasiphae will not fall to the likes of you!" The [Steel] deity screamed from his hiding spot. What was with this guy? He screamed about Godou being a coward, but in the end, wasn't he the one who hid while his beast fought?

Wait a minute… Pasiphae?

Pasiphae was a Greek queen. She had been the mother of the Minotaur and not a beast like this. How could this monster come from the daughter of a god? It didn't make any sense that a deity of [Steel] could use a demigod as a divine beast.

Although, there had been one part of the legend that did seem to make the pieces of the puzzle fit. The god Poseidon had cursed her to fall in love with a bull using the help of Aphrodite. In order to become pregnant with the Minotaur, she had instructed a man to build a wooden cow. The man she had hired had been an inventor…

Daedalus. A Greek inventor who built the labyrinth and flew with wax wings.

"Your name isn't Muramasa at all! It was just the name people gave you when you arrived here. You are Daedalus, aren't you?" Godou yelled to the voice. By now the five-hundred meter tall behemoth had extracted itself halfway from the crater and was stabilizing its footing. The voice of its master made it twitch.

"Do not call me by that name, Whelp! You do not deserve to know of my history any more than you deserve to wield that sword." The voice which had until now been angry, was now furious uneven. The deity was not like anything Godou had expected it to be. An amalgamation of several deities was not uncommon as it meant in most cases that the deity was famous, but he obviously hated his own history. In the story of The Minotaur he had built the wooden cow for Pasiphae and the labyrinth for Minos, but had been imprisoned with his son. In an attempt to escape, the son had died.

The story was sad, but it was a common scenario for a deity of the Greek pantheon. There had to be more, the armor he wore was proof of it! How could he make the deity talk, how could…

He was stopped in his plans as the beast tried to flatten him into the ground. The beast was enormous, but somehow it was able to match the Godspeed of [The Chariot] despite the fact that it should be slowed down by the size. Godou once again flicked the reins, urging the stallions to go faster. The horses understood what was happening and increased their speed, narrowly avoiding the giant fist which was seeking to crush them to mush. The hand struck the side of the mountain instead, the tremendous force once more rocking the ground. Lava poured out of the small hole which had managed to reach the molten stone inside the mountain.

Godou had finally realized just how lucky people were in that ordinary humans could not see divine beings. Watching a World Heritage Site being demolished by a giant Minotaur was probably not something he had wanted to see if he was a normal human. Then again, he was Japanese and Japanese people always had that fascination with giant monsters wrecking Tokyo.

However, he needed to find a way to take out Pasiphae. His authorities did not have any advantage against whatever that thing was spawned from as it was clearly not part of the [Steel] category of gods. Which meant that he had two options: Use a full blast of [Heavens Crashdown] which would take him down to only two rounds left, or rush it with [The Chariot]. While the former seemed to be wasteful, the latter seemed to be rather suicidal since it was a huge Divine Beast covered in molten lava. If only he had some kind of manual on how to fight a god or someth…

Despite the situation, he couldn't help but slap his forehead and groan at his stupidity. The best way to figuring out a deity's myth was to use [Spirit Vision], something only witches and Hime-mikos could use. However since he had [Crown of Mystical Arts] he could also utilize it. Of course, he was a male user so it was significantly weaker than the likes of Princess Alice, but since there was a huge amount of Divine energy in the air, there wouldn't be a problem with efficiency.

"For there is no equal in the arts of magic, I have brought the spells of the Vanir. I teach, I learn, I shall always stand at the summit!"

The chant for the [Crown of Mystical Arts was a strange one. Most of the time it was a passive authority; he could learn magic faster and chant them quicker. He could use them far more skillfully than other people who practiced just as much or even more.

But that was only if he wanted to use magic anyone could use. In order to use specialized magic which could only be used by a few like [Flight] or [Spirit Vision], he needed to activate his authority. Even then his magic was not on par. [Spirit Vision] was a magic which required inborn talent. When Godou was reborn as a Campione, he was born with a certain amount of that talent. That certain amount just happened to be extremely low. If Princess Alice's talent was at 1000 attack points and the average Hime-miko was at 100, Godou had about 30… before he activated his authority, that is.

When he used [Crown of Mystical Arts] his talent was boosted, not enough to rival the princess, but more than the average Hime-miko. Another way to increase the efficiency was to fill the air with magical energy which had already happened and even better, it was divine magical energy. The moment he activated it, his vision gained an unnatural sheen to it like shade you'd get if you applied the sepia-filter to a photo. As he took in the new scenery, a vision flashed across his eyes.

* * *

_The blacksmith forged the swords for the king day after day, but the king was never satisfied. Every blade you forge is incomplete, he had said. Forge me a perfect sword, he had said._

"_When you present me with the greatest sword mankind has ever made, I shall set you free. You will be free to go or you can join me in my army. You will be celebrated as the greatest hero, everyone will know of the name of Volund." The king told the blacksmith. The smith thought it was a foolish offer; he had never been a warrior. _

_But the offer gave him hope. Could he be a great knight one day? Would people remember him as a strong hero who conquered the lands and protected the innocents?_

_And so he forged on._

* * *

A sword almost chopped his head off as he was brought out of his vision. The only reason he was able to dodge it was because Àrvakr and Alsvidr had made a sharp turn and brought him out of the blades trajectory. That was bad. The visions seemed to happen in real life and he lost track of what happened when he used [Spirit Vision].

But the vision had showed him one thing which would help.

"Filthy scum! How dare you bring up my past like that! Death is not enough of a punishment for you! You must suffer the madness like I have before you can die!" The god Muramasa/Daedalus yelled. He brought down blow after blow after blow, using his katana to try and slice Godou into little slivers of meat. Godou weathered the blows with his sword, however the winged deity had such force behind the strikes that his arms were beginning to feel dull. Each time he drew his sword back only to bring it down again, Godou felt the vibrations travel up his arms and end painfully in his chest.

And now we are back to where we left off.

"Damn you! Damn you! Damn you! Damn you! Damn you!" Muramasa/Daedalus frantically repeated over and over again with each strike. Though the strikes were faster than any Godou had ever seen, they lacked the skill or finesse of the older members of the kendo. As a result, he was able to block, dodge or divert most of the attacks. It was very odd though, for a deity of [Steel] to be so unskilled with a sword. Most heroes of legend were famous for their skills, but Daedalus had been an inventor and Muramasa a swordsmith. Neither of them was known for their heroic battles against all odds so the reason he was of [Steel] must lie elsewhere.

Stabilizing the [Heavens Crashdown] in his blade he started counter-attacking. Godou's skill with a sword was not at the level of the deity's, but in terms of reading his opponent and using tactics to overwhelm him, Godou was superior by a longshot.

The blade shined with burning light and each time Muramasa struck with his own sword, small cracks would appear on the Juuichi Yosamu. That was to be expected; if a sword of [Steel] met a sword of [Fire], the [Steel] blade would melt. Crack after crack, blow after blow, the battle continued. The deity with his insane ramblings and incessant strikes and Godou with his silent stare and calculated counters. All the while, the chariot Godou stood on would race across the sky like a comet, with the winged deity flying close behind.

Eventually Godou was in perfect position to implement his plan. The horses who inherited Arvakr and Alsvidr's spirits understood his thoughts and followed his commands. When Muramasa was about to initiate another series of blows, Godou jumped of the chariot.

One important thing to remember when dealing with enormous mythological monsters and deities is that they are not ruled by common sense or laws the same way mortal men are. They are existences made out of the beliefs of humanity and empowered by the way people believed in them. Therefore in order to combat them, one needs to have a distorted view of common sense.

This was the reason why Godou thought it was a good idea to jump off a flying chariot 4,500 meters off the ground on top of a pregnant Minotaur which stood in lava and was also covered by the hot molten stone.

He held onto the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi with his left hand and pointed his right hand towards the monstrous Pasiphae. He reached for the pool of divine energy he had within him and he could feel his body fill with divine power.

_"Let there be no darkness beneath me. Let there be no shadows above me. Let the prey which seeks to hide themselves in the night be slain! I who Hunt the Abyssal ones, fear my wrath!"_

This was the second round of [Heavens Crashdown] he had used in that night. Unlike before, when he had used the sword as a focus in order to imbue the blade with power, this was a pure blast of white-blue energy of light. The beam of divine fire charged towards the colossus and, because of its position in the volcano, it could not dodge. It held up its two football stadium-sized hands as a last attempt to shield itself from the light, but the divine fire simply tore through the palms and incinerated the rest. The spearpoint of [Heavens Crashdown] finally struck the bullhead and an enormous explosion occurred at impact.

The shockwave was enough to halt Godou's descent and it knocked the air out of his lungs, despite him being over a hundred meters away. He coughed and tried to inhale, but the fall and the cold air made it difficult to breath. He mentally called for Àrvakr and Alsvidr to pick him up, but saw in the corner of his eye how Muramasa was going to charge him. He twisted his body and gripped the blade with both hands while using [Enhancement] at full power. Then the deity collided with him.

If the previous blows had been like getting hit by a freight train, this was like getting hit by a meteorite. It had been a charge which used both the momentum of the descent, the speed of his wings and the strength of his muscles to slam into him like an arrow. Even though Godou used all his strength, even though Godou used [Enhancement], even though he tried all he could to redirect the blow to the side, the collision was perfect. The blade the god was using pushed Totsuka-no-Tsurugi out of the way and pierced Godou's stomach.

Agony was the first thing he could think of. This was not the same pain he felt when he had been pierced by the spear of Sòl. This was a deeper pain, a pain on a cellular level. Every molecule in his body screamed from the torment inflicted from the blade. This was not the blade of a normal god. It was cursed.

* * *

_The inventor had been imprisoned for no man could ever be allowed to know what he knew. The man grew bitter for he had nothing wrong. He had served his king with loyalty and courage. He invented and forged the weapons of war that the king required of him, he had created the labyrinth for the king to use, but he was not some dog to lock inside the house for some petty reason._

_The queen had asked him for help and he had helped her. Was it not his duty to serve his queen? Where was his reward for his loyalty? The king had demanded him to help and helped him he had. Was it not his duty to serve his king? Where was his reward for his loyalty? Eternal imprisonment for his servitude!_

_That was not a reward, it was slavery! He, the greatest inventor and blacksmith, had been imprisoned by his own lord for following orders! For shame!_

_But he would escape, but not before he could revenge his pride for what they had done to him._

* * *

Godou had seen it. The reason his blades were cursed. Why the deity was of steel, but not of war. The deity holding a sword in Godou's stomach was not a warrior, not completely.

He gritted his teeth as he gripped the handle of the deity's sword and used his own flaming sword to strike the hand holding the hilt. Muramasa let go of the sword just in time to avoid losing his hand, but the blade was sliced off from the hilt. Calling out for his stallions he was surprised to see them almost right by him. He reached out his hand to grab one of them, hoping he would have enough time before he hit the ground. He managed to grab the mane of the right horse and the stallions pulled up. Godou spared a glance down and saw he was less than twenty meters from the peak of Fuji.

It was a good thing he was lucky.

As the horses lowered him onto the ground, Godou kept a watchful eye on the deity. It had not flown after him when he had plummeted to the ground, but had stayed in the air for some reason. He had been raving mad, but now he showed a more controlled posture. Oh, he was still furious. Godou could see how he shook with anger, but he wasn't flying straight at him with only the intent to kill. Whether that was good or bad wasn't clear, but at least it gave him time to think.

The Minotaur on the other hand was finished, though there wasn't really any way to tell if it had been a Minotaur at all. The head had disappeared, along with the arms, shoulders and chest. All that remained of it was the bloated and pregnant stomach and the smoldering hips. The legs would probably burn up soon since the beast was weak to fire. It was interesting to watch the monster slowly fall, like the slow-motion effects used in theatres. Slowly, but surely the colossus tipped over, the body pretty much destroying all the torii-gates and shops on the mountains. The ground trembled as it impacted and everything which came in contact with the corpse caught fire.

A stinging pain in his stomach brought his attention back to his injury. The blade in his gut was still there and every movement wrecked his body with pain. He gripped the blade in both the ends sticking out of his belly and his back and pushed it out. He grunted in pain as the ragged edges of the katana sliced and diced at his guts, but the soul-infecting pain spreading from the sword told him it needed to go. With one final push it dropped to the ground and shattered on impact.

Although the blade was gone and he was using [Healing] to stop the flow of blood, he could still feel the curse left by the sword. The exact purpose of the curse he could not tell as he was focusing on the deity, but he could tell it had debilitating properties. Despite the fact that he had finallt managed to kill the Divine Beast, he didn't feel like he had the advantage.

"You… There is more to your legend than simply Daedalus and Muramasa, isn't there? In northern Europe, there is a story of a crippled blacksmith. The blacksmith had been locked in a tower and hamstrung to force him to stay there. He was forced to forge items and swords for the king in the hopes that one day he would be freed. But the king refused to let him go and the blacksmith went insane. He murdered the sons of the king and raped the daughter who became pregnant with his child. The child was raised in secrecy in his tower as he had used a secret ring to conceal the pregnancy. One day the two escaped using wings the father had made. Just like Daedalus!" He yelled to the deity.

* * *

"_Father, are you sure this will work? Humans were not meant to fly, we were meant to walk on the ground like the gods made us." The son told his father. He was being outfitted with large feathered wings, black from the fires of the forge. _

"_Of course, -. Do you really doubt your old man now? The only thing you must remember is not to fly too high as the heat of the sun will melt the metal and not to fly too low either as the sea would rust the wings before we reach land." The smith was not taking no for an answer. He had spent decades in the tower without being able to see the sun or feel the wind on his cheek. He was delirious with excitement and his voice was eager._

_He had already put on his own wings when he told his son to use his hammer to break the wall. It took only a single swing and a moment later, the sun was clear to see. _

_They both used their wings to fly away from the tower, and they soared higher than any bird. But the son was too excited._

"_Father, is this the sky you told me about? And the grass, it's so green! The sea is so large I can't see the end!" as they flew the youth pointed out the things which he had never seen before. He had never stepped foot outside of the tower and the simple fact that he was outside symbolized his freedom in more ways than one._

"_Yes, -, that is the sky and the grass is green. The sea which stands beneath you is nothing compared to the ocean of the west." The blacksmith told his son, overjoyed that he had finally given his son and heir the chance to be out. _

"_Look father! The bright flame in the sky! It so brilliant and dazzling! I have to see it up close!" The son yelled to his father and rose to the sun. _

"_No, -! Don't!" The smith tried to warn his son, but the child ignored him. The boy was too excited to be free, to be able to do anything he wanted. His entire life had been the small tower and now he could see and feel everything in the world. _

_He did not notice the metal of the wings starting to melt. He did not notice it was getting harder to increase in altitude. He did not notice that instead of rising, he was falling. It was not until he was in the cold waters that he realized he had failed._

"_Father, help me! Father!" the youth screamed as the waves crash over his head and tried to drown him._

_The smith tried to fly down and help him, but the wings started to rust and he could not swim as he was crippled to begin with. He could only watch as his child was overcome by wave after wave. When the winds stopped and the smith had thought he could finally save his son, the sharks appeared. Piece by piece, they tore at the youth and the sea was colored red by the blood._

_Finally there was not anything left for the smith and he flew away, exhausted and grieving._

* * *

"That blacksmith was called Volund and he was considered to be the greatest swordsmith in legends. He forged the swords of heroes, including Gram, Durendal, Curtana and The sword of Ascarron. That is why you are called [The Father of Steel], not because you are the first or strongest of deities, but because you are the one to create the basis of [Steel]; their weapons!"

He spoke with an eagerness he had not known he had. He had solved the mystery of the deity's origins! The legend of Daedalus was famous just like the one of Muramasa and the swords Volund had forged. But there was still more to tell.

Oddly the deity had not made a move since. He simply hovered in the air, suspended by the steady beats of his wings.

"But the legend was distorted into several! In the north he became Wayland, Dain and Dvalinn. Dvalinn was a dwarf and one of the greatest smiths. Volund's crippled status had reduced him to a dwarf in the tales and was made fun of. It wasn't until Svafrlami forced him to forge a blade for him that he became a figure of legends. While Wayland forged holy swords capable of slaying dragons, Dvalinn forged cursed swords and when threatened by the man to forge a magic sword he cursed it to take a man's life each time it was drawn. Dain was the king of elves and likewise forged a sword filled with curses."

"In the south however, the swordsmith lost his connection to the blades and weapons. The Greeks already had a god of the forge, Hephaestus, who tolerated no rivals. The Greek god assimilated the crippled properties of Volund and Volund himself was reduced an inventor, Daedalus. There he built a wooden cow to help the queen Pasiphae mate with a bull. Your divine beast was part of that legend, the mix of human and animal!" He was panting now. The way he was pouring out everything he had learnt about the deity was perfect! He didn't even have time to breathe.

"However, that would not make you A deity of [Steel], just a deity of the forge. You were once a hero weren't you? A hero who tried to serve his king!"

* * *

_The king had found him. _

_He had tried to run away from the lord he had once served, but there was nowhere to hide with his description. All he could have done was to wait for the capture._

"_I do not blame you, Volund. I truly do not" The king had told him. He had not believed his ears. What was the king saying?_

"_I went too far in my ambitions and I could not blame you for obeying my wife. It was her own choice to commit the crime she did, but you were just loyal to the crown. I do not blame." Tears welled up in the smith's eyes at the words of the king. He had killed his son and violated the daughter and the king did not know of it. How could he say he did not blame him?_

"_I want you to come back to the castle with me. I shall give you the best resources so that you can rebuild your body and when you have recovered, you shall join me in my crusade as my right hand and greatest warrior." The king gave him the offer he could not refuse. _

_Him, a warrior? Impossible! _

_But he had not refused. How could he? After all he had done and the king still did not blame him. So he returned to the tower and started forging a body of steel for himself. It was hard work, but at last he succeeded. He went to the king and showed him the armor and he was told by the king that he was now a knight, a warrior of the highest caliber. His name had been changed from Volund the blacksmith to Wayland the warrior. He was overjoyed._

_He entered the battles with sword in hand and slew the enemy with mind filled with thoughts of mission. Nothing could stand in his way._

_But for each battle, someone else was praised for it. Oliver, Turpin, Ogier, Ganelon, all of them received the glory for his accomplishments. The king told him not to worry, that it was natural that one or two people would receive false glory and to let it be, his time will come._

_But his time did not come. Over time he faded in glory and lost his place to another warrior called Roland._

* * *

"You tried to earn glory as a warrior, but no matter how hard you tried, you never received the honor for it!" Godou told the deity, daring it to correct him.

It spoke. "Yes, it is true. I was a warrior in action only. I never became a hero of the legends; I was banished to the place of the forge despite my most eager attempts. The king did not care about the petty feelings of a blacksmith, even if he was stronger than any of his men. I was his servant, a tool, not his knight."

* * *

_Alone, the smith went out to face an army in a desperate attempt to reclaim his place next to the king. He used his blade to slay foe after foe. After a battle of epic proportions, he was victorious. An army was slain by his hands and he was sure to be rewarded the place of honor for his efforts._

_But then Roland came. He claimed it was him who had killed the army when the king arrived. The king believed too. In his anger, Wayland threw his sword at the man, killing Roland and splitting a mountain at the same time. _

_Bitter and enraged, the blacksmith hid himself, wowing to never help royalty again. After many years, a youth appeared before him. He had the shards of a beautiful sword, but there was not a smith capable of forging the shards back together. So he had searched for the Crippled Blacksmith who had been rumored to forge the greatest of blades._

_The smith saw the shards and decided that he would create one last blade, one who would surpass anything wielded by the paladins of his former king. He took the broken steel and heated it in the forge. He hammered and hammered and hammered the steel into shape, forging a great sword to slay the enemies before him._

_When the sword was done, the youth took it and used it against the fierce dragon which plagued the land. Satisfied that he had surpassed his own skill, the blacksmith was laid to rest._

* * *

"You were an ordinary man, but your skill surpassed the gods. People told tales of your blades until it spread and you achieved a myth capable of bringing you into the world as a Heretic God. As a deity you wandered the lands and taught people the art of the forge, something which had brought you joy and suffering over the ages. That is why your blades are cursed as Muramasa; a ruler once tried to ban your blades from being used and erase your existence the same way the king and Roland did." Godou finished.

The pain spreading in his gut had lessened somewhat. There was a reason for that as well. The reason the deity was mad was because people had used it for their own purposes while trying to hide his existence. Godou had not attempted to hide it and was therefore resistant to most of the debilitating curses.

"So what now, godslayer? You have seen my origins, the tale of my progenitor. It still does not help you in this battle. It still does not shield you from my blows and I have tired of this little game. You shall face you punishment for killing my creation; the punishment of death!"

While the deity had been talking, Godou had walked back to the chariot. He had not used it to ram the divine beast because he needed to use it against the deity of [Steel] and he could not have used the divine fire while holding off the onslaught of blows at the same time. That is why he had to jump off, but now it was only him and the deity. No beast to disrupt him as he fought.

He gripped the reins and urged the stallions to go forward, to ram the deity head-on. They complied with his request. They knew the power of their stampede would damagea deity of [Steel] if hit with a direct hit. So they charged the god with strange armor.

The deity of many names who shall from now on be called Muramasa brought forth a blade of European design. A large sword of four meters and pulsating with cursed energy, it was the largest blade Godou had seen, even larger than the Zweihänder he had dodged before in his apartment. Using his wings to maneuver in the sky, they began a twisted form of jousting.

Godou used the chariot to trample and crush the opponent with its power while he held his sword which shined with divine light and parried the strikes from the long-sword. Muramasa used his agility to dodge the chariot while the sword would find ways to try and take Godou's head off. Each run of the chariot would leave flames in its wake while the cursed blade would permeate the air with its cursed magic. The lava beneath them boiled and flowed from the gaps in the mountains caused by the clashes of their powers.

Each time the chariot missed the deity the charge would hit the mountain side, carving a long scar as it trampled the ground and the chariot burned the stone. Each strike from the cursed sword would be deflected and slice the volcano with its power and erode the surface with the curses. The mountain which had been an inspiration for artist worldwide was being tortured by the might of God and Campione. The white snow which had covered it had been melted by the heat and it now looked like a true volcano rather than a mountain.

Godou's injury burned with pain, but he ignored it in order to focus on the battle. He had no idea if he was winning or not as he had the upper hand in firepower, but Muramasa had range. Deciding to take a chance, he changed the plan.

_"Let there be no darkness beneath me. Let there be no shadows above me. Let the prey which seeks to hide themselves in the night be slain! I who Hunt the Abyssal ones, fear my wrath!"_

For the third time he used the authority of divine light. The beam rushed forward, intending to smite the opponent. Muramasa saw the attack and evaded. It was to be expected; the attack had been used too far away to actually hit the agile deity. The wings he had used were annoying in that regard, but that was not the objective. True it would have been nice had the strike hit the deity and he wouldn't have felt like he had wasted the last round he had left. It was the second target he had been aiming for and had hit.

"What are you aiming at? You'll never hit me with a sloppy strike like that, you insignificant fool!" the deity taunted him. It stopped however when it saw the smile on his face. It turned around as saw what he had been aiming for.

The light had struck the volcano with all its divine power. The lava which had been pouring out before was now spewing out of the large rock. And who was flying right next to the opening?

Muramasa.

He didn't have time to say a word before he was caught in the avalanche of lava and flames. The weakness of all [Steel] was [Flames]. Quite frankly, any kind of heat would do in large amounts. Even a flame of human origins could be used to slay a deity of the steel category, but it would have to be of enormous proportions, more than what 10,000 mages could produce. A volcano contains more power than that meager amount and Godou had used his own flames to increase it. If Muramasa could survive that heat then Godou was unsure what could kill him.

He pulled the reins to take him closer to the point where Muramasa had been devoured by the flames. The cloak around him which had been worn by Sòl protected him from heat and cold so the heat radiating from the orange magma was of no concern. He could not see any signs of the Heretic God, nor could he sense the magic from him. It was unsettling in a way. He had just used a powerful attack which should have killed the god, but he couldn't sense the power he should have received if that had happened.

He was about to circle around when he saw a figure rise. It was massive, but nowhere near the same scale as the minotaur as before. He was large, more than ten meters tall and bulging with muscles. His arms were especially huge as the biceps were larger than his head. He wore an apron made of several pieces of brown leather and rough gloves. In his hands were two hammers, each larger than his arms. The handles seemed to have fused with his hands, giving the fists a silvery color. He wore no pants as he had no need for them. His legs and hips had been replaced with metal constructions. The bolts and screws were primitive and the metal plates had dents from careless hammering, but they looked more powerful than the parts of his body that were made of flesh.

It was his face though, which was the oddest. One side was laughing while the other was roaring with anger. When he spoke, both sides moved.

"**You thought you could kill me with the flames of the earth? Foolish little godslayer, I am the blacksmith who forges the greatest of steel. No man or god knows better than I that in order to forge a blade, one needs a forge. The reason I chose this place as our battleground was because there is no better flame to forge a sword than the flames of Mother Earth!"** The absurd god said.

He kneeled to the ground and picked up a large piece of half-hardened lava using his hammer-hands. Then he used one hammer as an anvil while he started beating the lava with the other. Within three strikes the lava had gone from what resembled hot slime to a blade the size of a bus. The blade was best described as Wicked. The edge was jagged and uneven, like the teeth of a saw. The guard was curved into large hooks and the tip serrated. All in all, it was a weapon not made to kill with, but a weapon made to slaughter. When it was finished it had replaced the hammer in his right hand and fused itself into the fist.

Godou had no idea how the god of [Steel] was able to survive the flames of the sun and earth, but he didn't really care at this point. He had since long ago resigned himself to the fact that only one victor would emerge from this battle and he was going to make sure that it was Godou who emerged victorious. That meant killing the god in front of him, no matter the cost.

The giant blacksmith swung the giant cleaver at Godou. It was at a surprising speed for a man his size, but [The Chariot] was traveling at Godspeed now, even Godou had a hard time keeping track of the surroundings. Up, right, left, down, the chariot turned in every direction in order to avoid the blade which seemed to cut the very air apart. Each time he swung the blade, Godou would pull the reins in one direction to avoid it.

This was not a give-and-take duel where he and the opponent would trade blows for blows. This was a battle where the slightest mistake would spell death, where slightest step would spell victory. Who would prevail; Muramasa with his giant body and Evil Blade, or Godou with his chariot and Blade of Light?

What would Godou do? He had no plan which would help him in this situation. He had no light left from [Heavens Crashdown] other what was in his blade and he was already using the chariot. All he had was the Successor of Skinfaxi in reserve. He could use him as a mount to attack but that would leave…

A grin broke out on his face and his currents mounts agreed with him as they increased in velocity. A final strike was a good idea for any combat-situation! It was time to demolish the enemy who had intruded on his territory.

He made a sharp pull and charged straight towards Muramasa. The giant saw him and lifted his blade in a defensive stance. Too bad it was useless. Just as they were going to get close to the giant blacksmith and Muramasa swung his sword, Godou called on Skinfaxi's Successor and jumped onto his back. The chariot pulled by Àrvakr and Alsvidr's successors turned to the left and Godou and his own mount turned to the right. The blade went down in between them, most likely because Muramasa had been too confused to change the trajectory. The chariot completed its charge and struck the giant in his heart.

[The Chariot] was not a weapon one can use like a sword. The power of a sword was the cutting power while the chariot had power of destruction. The stallions were made of the fire from the sun and the chariot carried the sun across the sky, in other words, the chariot was the power of the sun. In almost all religions, the sun has always been a symbol of strength and power. It was the reason crops grew and people were fed. It was the reason the night was chased away and the people were safe. The sun was a warrior all by itself.

So the flash of light that occurred when the chariot impacted on the giant's chest did not come as a surprise to Godou. Unlike the times he had use the beam of light, this was a silent explosion. No sound was heard, not even a peep. Godou thought he had gone deaf, but quickly realized that it was simply the enormous shockwave that had disrupted the sounds coming from the explosion. It was an unusual experience to say the least. Silence, complete and utter silence followed the chariot's demise.

As he rode on the Stallion made of flames, gripping the sword in his left hand, he kept wondering about how the other stallions felt about the plan. Since [Chariot] was still active he could sense their thoughts. They were tired, exhausted even, but there was no resentment for it. They had been happy to serve him in his insane rush. It was the loyalty of a Divine Beast, a loyalty which completely surpassed any other in the world. Truly, he was lucky to have such comrades.

Setting the horse down on the lava, he saw the corpse of the deity he had slain. Volund, Daedalus, Wayland, Muramasa, Dain, Dvalinn, Mpu Gandring, Kothar-wa-Khasis, whoever he was, he was floating on the burning liquid. He was no longer the size of a giant and his armour was gone. He looked like the average European person now, devoid of madness. He seemed sad, though as if his whole world had been destroyed. Godou felt… guilty for some reason, even though he had no idea why.

"You managed to slay me, Yamato Takahashi." The deity said. It was the first time he said his name. "To think a godslayer from the east managed to slay me in the end. Quite the irony, considering who is slumbering in this land." Was he lamenting?

"Why did you come here? There was no reason to seek me out to do battle. What is about Campione that gods hate so much?" Godou asked. Aside from slaying gods, there wasn't any reason for him to dislike Godou enough to try and kill him.

"Does the tiger need a reason to drive the lion away? Does a wolf need a reason to kill the cougar? There is no other reason to kill you other than it is in our nature not to let you live. Still, even though the steel you carry is sick and twisted, it is a good blade. Though it won't do you any good anymore, the steel you hold is a dead blade now. No human forge could create a sword capable of holding a god's power." He suddenly smiled for some reason.

"Godslayer, if you intend to wield a blade then you shall need steel worthy of you stature. Take my [Steel] and go forth, you have my blessing." With that the deity called Muramasa disappeared, his body shattering into tiny shards.

Godou sighed, not knowing what he should have done. The battle had been titanic and had anyone seen it in person they would never had been satisfied with kaiju-films again. Seriously: A giant pregnant Minotaur fighting from inside a volcano against a Solar Chariot; that's the kind of thing which only happens in blockbusters.

Now that it was all over, he guessed it was time to go home and sleep… Holy crap, Mt Fuji is about to erupt!

Though it was already erupting with rivers of lava spewing forth from the crater, the cracks in the side caused from the battle were also pouring out lava around the mountain. He had not realized the damage caused, but wasn't this a natural reaction if incredible amount of stress is applied to something as unstable as a volcano? He should have expected this to happen, after a huge freaking giant just tore up the entire thing from the inside, an eruption is the normal outcome.

What the hell was he supposed to do?! [The Chariot] couldn't help, if anything it would make things worse! [Crown of Mystical Arts] wouldn't work either as it didn't give him power of earth. what the hell was he...

Oh... cooling spells and magic supplies of a god... Why was he worried?

Making up his mind he set out to work…

* * *

_The next day…_

Kaoru and her subordinate were sitting in her office and both of them were reading the report from the night before. Amakusa had brought the folder to his superior, but the report had been so large that it was easier to simply read it together.

_The report of Fuma Kotaro _

_At 22 PM, a large projectile struck the apartment block owned by the King Yamato Takahashi. While the projectile was traveling so fast our eyes could not see it, the king was able to dodge it flawlessly. From our distance we heard the Heretic God accuse the king of being a coward, an accusation the king immediately took as a personal insult. The warding around the building was too strong for us to see what was happening, but most likely the king was preparing himself for the confrontation with the god. _

_After a few minutes we saw the king step out on the roof of the building and summon a chariot pulled by two divine beasts cloaked in flames. Using the chariot, he rode away to Mt Fuji to defeat the deity. It took us several minutes to reach the mountain, but the clash had already started by the time we got there. The deity had summoned a colossal subordinate god to aid him in battle which was trying to crush the Campione. _

_King Yamato on the other hand did not care for the giant subordinate however and simply blasted its head and upper body away. The giant corpse fell and did a fair amount of damage to the mountain. At this point, the deity engaged the king more personally and managed to inflict a wound on the king's person although it appeared to be a trap as it allowed the king to discern the origins of the god and destroy the blade used to attack him. After revealing the history about the god and revealing it to be an amalgamation of several famous blacksmiths, including Muramasa, Daedalus and Wayland the smith, king Yamato used the volcano itself as a weapon by using a powerful flame-authority to force an eruption which took the deity by surprise._

_The deity did not die however, but simply changed form into a large blacksmith who forged a blade from the lava. After the king effortlessly dodged each and every blow, he simply let his chariot charge into the giant, causing another, even larger explosion in the process. The deity died soon after._

_After the battle, the king stopped the eruption by using overpowered cooling spells onto the damaged parts of the volcano and using multiple freezing spells on the cracks themselvs. After the crisis had been dealt with the king left by riding bareback on a single horse cloaked in flames._

_Summary: While the exact deity King Yamato slew in order to become a Campione is unknown, it had apparently ties to the sun. It is most likely a deity who rides a sun-chariot, one possibility is Apollo. What authority the king gained from slaying the deity called Muramasa is unknown, but will most likely have something to do with steel._

_Summary of King Yamato: A secretive person is the first thing which comes to mind. He covers himself with black clothes in order to conceal his identity. Even our most talented agents have not been able to pierce through the illusion he weaves over his face. The clothes he wore were not enhanced in any way, but he utilized [Enhancement] magic in a way similar to Sir Salvatore. He seems to value swordsmanship very highly as he was been seen practicing with a sword several hours a day. _

_In terms of personality, King Yamato is vicious. He had no problem with causing an eruption which could have killed tens of thousands just for the sake of battle. He revels in battle if the joy in his voice was any indication, but seems to dislike the act of killing his opponent in the end. Like all Campione, his common sense is almost nonexistent. He didn't hesitate for a moment when jumping of the chariot several hundred meters in the air and laughed when confronted by a giant with a sword capable of cutting the very air._

_So far we have not been able to discern the true identity of the king, but our efforts shall not cease._

Campione were illogical beings. She had known that much and she had been reminded of it several times since it had been made public that she was to contact the king. Common sense had no effect on them and to try and use any kind of morals that common folk had onto the kings of men would be a pointless endeavor. She should have expected the king of Japan to create some kind of mess like this, just like she should have made first contact sooner.

The man had set off an active volcano just miles away from Tokyo. The thought of having a volcano erupt so close to the city sent a shiver down Kaoru's spine. If he didn't care about the lives of millions of people, what difference would Kaoru's make? The possibility of him actually letting her be was almost nonexistent. If the man had no problem with killing everyone in cities as well-populated as Tokyo then what difference would one girl make? No difference at all is the answer.

Now the man had gotten even stronger with another authority under his rule. What was she going to do? Could she run? If she utilized magic to conceal her tracks then she could evade most of the HCC agents (or ninjas as most called them), but the more skilled members like Amakasu would find her within a month. They wouldn't let their sacrificial pawn go, even if it meant going against her grandfather's orders. Sayanomiya Daichi had a lot of power, but not even he could put the wellbeing of his granddaughter over the wellbeing of japan. No, she had to stay and meet the Campione.

That meant she would have to find a way to avoid becoming a simple toy for his amusement. Could she become an advisor to him, like Andrea Rivera had become to the Italian king? It was a viable option, but only if she was able to show that she could be more than a toy meant for his sexual pleasure. That was a tall order, especially considering his age when hormones controlled most of his choices and the fact that he had already made quite well for himself moneywise. She would have to be his guide in other matters then, matters concerning magic and gods. She would be his right hand, showing him how to act as a king and the proper way to rule. He would look up to her and when troubled, he would ask for her council. If all he wanted was to relieve himself in matters of a sexual nature then there was no shortage of women in the HCC.

The problem with that was when Andrea Rivera had become Salvatore's advisor it was because the Italian king had been incompetent in terms of magic and social events. All he was good for was fighting and swordplay. Yamato Takahashi was already quite skilled in magic of the photographs of him using a high-level freezing spell was any indication. She had no idea in what to teach him, except for magic and martial arts. She could be an assistant, planning events and helping him with finding gods to fight, but that would not give her the position of trust she needed. She had to be someone he looked up to, not someone he employed. He wouldn't respect her if all she could do was give him plans for the day and then serve him drinks. That kind of relationship would eventually give him reason to replace her and she would be demoted to toy.

What was she good at? Martial arts were one thing; she was skilled in archery and a bare-handed martial art called Shuto Ancient Style, but also several others. Karate, kempo and aikido were the ones she had learned as well, but never advanced any further due to the training required to become a Hime-miko. Would the king be interested in learning martial arts? He had shown to be practicing kendo, but would the same interest be applied to bare-handed techniques as well?

The other thing she was capable of would be magic, or more accurately; [Spirit Vision]. While she was not the most talented user in japan, she did rank in the top ten while she was still fit enough to fight. That meant she was a valuable ally or subordinate in any situation concerning the paranormal side of life. If she was able to convince the king to learn martial arts like kempo and to show him her talent in the fields of magic then he would come to look up to her as an older sister maybe. She would no longer be a piece of meat in his eyes, but someone to protect and cherish. That would show the world that Sayanomiya Kaoru was the right hand of King Yamato Takahashi, effectively making her someone the campione trusted rather than used.

One of her most difficult task when she had achieved that position would be to limit the destruction caused by his battles. She had realized that stopping him from fighting was an impossible task, as he was a Campione and nobody told a Campione what to do, but maybe she could direct the king, guide him into the path which would lead to the least amount of casualties. From the initial reports, no humans had been killed from the lava released, but the investigations were still ongoing. Letting him fight another god near a volcano would be one of the things she would try to avoid.

If there was one thing which was certain then it was that she had her work cut out for her.

* * *

_Updated list on authorities:_

_[Crown of Mystical Arts]: enables him to learn all magic possible. Even if there are conditions which would normally make it impossible for him to do it; like female-only magic, Spirit Vision, flight. It is not an actual Authority, but more of a gift from a goddess before he became a campione._

"_For there is no equal in the arts of magic, I have brought the spells of the Vanir. I teach, I learn, I shall always stand at the summit!"_

* * *

_**[Chariot of Scorched Heavens]**__: Split into two authorities, [The Chariot] and [Heavens Crashdown]._

* * *

_[The Chariot]: Summons the chariot Sòl rode on when she pulled the sun across the sky in search for prey. Can be pulled by three, two or a single horse, but the properties change by the numbers and how he rides them._

_Riding the chariot with three horses gives him the fastest Godspeed he can use as well as the most destructive powers the chariot can bring. A single charge could destroy a town in this state._

_Riding the chariot with two stallions give him more control, but at the cost of speed and power. In this state it is always Àrvakr and Alsvidr who pull the chariot._

_Riding the chariot with only a single horse gives him even more control at the cost of even more speed and power. The chariot cannot use its destructive charge in this state. In this form, it is always Skinfaxi who pulls the chariot._

_Riding a single horse gives him the most speed and control, but it does not give the stampede much power at all. In this state the speed surpasses that of the three-horsed chariot, at the cost of the destructive charge. This form is better suited for jousting with other Godspeed users. _

_The cloak provided protects him against heat and cold and is a gift from the goddess Sòl._

_The conditions for this Authority are:_

_Each horse takes two days to regenerate._

_The chariot takes four days to regenerate._

_"I bring the sun from the Eastern lands. Fire burns ever so hot, the flames are stars! Trample the rebels and hunt the prey, a bright light shall burn the skies!"_

* * *

_[Heavens Crashdown]: unleashes the power of divine light and fire. Can be used in two forms; a beam for long-range or channeled in the sword for close-combat. It is strong enough to hurt gods of [Steel] and kill divine beasts in a single strike._

_The conditions for this authority are:_

_Each round takes a day to regenerate._

_If a round is used before all three rounds have regenerated, Godou will suffer from the pain of being burnt from intense flames._

"_Let there be no darkness beneath me. Let there be no shadows above me. Let the prey which seeks to hide themselves in the night be slain! I who Hunt the Abyssal ones, fear my wrath!"_


	5. Father of Steel

_I'm back! _

_It's been a while since I updated this story, mostly because I changed schools and started writing more about Archer of Black, a story I discovered was too addictive to stop writing. However you wanted more ROTE so here I am. _

_I have to say, this was one of the most difficult chapters I have ever written. Each word I wrote felt like it was forced unlike when I normally write a chapter. In the end I had to stop and upload it. Hopefully the next chapter won't be such a pain trying to write… There were some problems with the chapter missing the last hundred words so I tried re-uploading it to make sure it was correct. Hope it works…_

_**IMPORTANT!**_

_I changed a few things in case you didn't remember the previous version. These things were: His authorities, Silverström's name and a few minor issues. These things were necessary for the plot sicne I didn't have a plan at first. Also, quite a few things happened in the Light Novel that crashed with the fanfic so I had to change a lot for this story to work._

_That was it for this AN. Please review if you enjoyed what you have read._

* * *

**ROTE**

Kushina was a Divine ancestor. She had been a goddess of the earth before she had been slain by the deity of [Steel] who had arrived from his myth. Ever since her fall from grace she had been forced to demean herself as a follower of that man. For 1,500 years she had been forced to accompany him as his bride and it wasn't until a few decades ago that she had escaped from his grasp. Not all of her though, just a fraction of her identity, a sliver of her original self. Her consciousness, her body as a Divine Ancestor had been able to wrestle enough control to escape, but her core still remained in the grasp of the brute unfortunately, not that she was planning on letting it remain there for long. In the first years of her freedom she had been forced to remember the captivity, all the things she had been forced to do at his whim. The feelings of violation she had felt at the time were enough to make even a Divine Ancestor weep.

But things would change now. She would have her revenge and she would be the one to drive the blade into the heart of the [Steel] which had sought to enslave her. In that regard, the one called Muramasa had been a blessing in disguise. While the presence of another [Steel] might have upset her plans, he had served to be an excellent diversion to distract her target. While she would have loved nothing more than to smite him while he was unguarded, she knew that she was not powerful enough to do that yet. It was too soon for her to try something as dangerous as that, even with her allies behind her back.

No, she had found something else to do while Muramasa battled the one called Yamato. She had gone for the source of her power which had been stripped from her ages ago. The deity had thought it to be a toy, something he could give away without regards to her pride. The insolence of the man! He had no right giving it away, not to someone as lowborn as a human. While he was distracted by the battle which caused the earth to tremble, she had infiltrated his territory and found the one he had blessed with her power.

While the girl was unremarkable in talent, she did seem to be gifted with a strange form of unity with her divinity. Did that mean…? Yes, she was definitely of Kushina's bloodline. While she hated the acts she had been forced to perform at the orders of the deity, she could not hate the children she had given birth to. They were innocent of the crimes of the parents and they were her children more than their father's. In fact, she loved them with all her heart. She remembered every single one of the demi-gods who had emerged from her womb. Every girl with black hair and ivory skin, every boy with golden eyes and an emperor's visage. She had named them of course, each and every one of them, but that brute who had taken them from her had not even let them keep their names and gave them human ones instead. Poor Fuujin became Akihito, Amane became Otori. Each year she would carry a child and each year she would lose them in a cruel and vicious cycle of humiliation and despair. Every time she had been forced to give them away she had cried for days to no avail. No mother should have to lose her child right after giving birth to them. It had been her hope that one day she would find them and bring them under her wing, to teach them magic and the wonders of the world, to guide them like all mothers should be able to. Yet for hundreds of years she had been locked away in a world where all she knew was the memories of children long since dead.

It was why she had been overjoyed to find one of her kin in this place, one of her little snakelings who was close enough to her in blood to wield her beloved core. It was no exaggeration to say that she had shed tears upon meeting the child. She had introduced herself to her many-times granddaughter and had been ecstatic to see the child respond. In the battle between God and Godslayer, Kushina had asked the child to come with her. The girl who was no older than fourteen had not hesitated in saying yes, much to the delight of the witch. Using magic which had long since been forgotten, she took the child and her core with her to the chambers of her hiding place.

Once she had put the girl to sleep in the altar room, she took the container of her authorities and felt the power flowing through it. The divine magic inside it had matured over the ages, evolved, but there was no mistaking the origins of the magical energy. This was her power, her authorities.

After all, it had been born of her flesh just as much as the child had been.

"Are you done playing with the brat now? I was gagging from just the sight of it." A voice brought her from her thoughts as the voice from one of her allies broke the silence in the dark and moist cavern.

The speaker was a tall man, taller than any human could naturally be. His rough face was riddled with scars and he walked with an awkward gait, as if he was injured and was trying not to aggravate the wound. His great beard was red and scraggly and he continuously scratched his chin because of it. He wore clothing hailing from the east, but due to his powerful physique he let most of it remain untied, showing off his muscular chest and arms. He appeared to be some kind of evil, eastern ogre if anyone took the time to analyze his appearance.

"I would prefer if you did not speak about my daughter that way, Lord Gong Gong. Not all of us hate our children and I have wanted to spend some time with my own for a long time now. Though I wonder where our most respected associate is. He is running quite late and punctuality is something we value in our current situation." Kushina responded.

Most would find the pair quite odd. The man was a giant with a bearlike body while the woman was petite with the appearance of a princess. They were on the opposite ends of all things related to beauty and size, but despite that they were talking as if equals. In fact, the scarred and ugly man was speaking to the woman with a condescending tone, as if she was beneath him.

He was a [Heretic God].

"The Ugly One fell in the battle against the Godslayer. I would have interfered, but if I had the man overseeing this land would have noticed me. He might have been a failure as a warrior, but he had a knack for the theatre. There was not a god or divine ancestor in the east who did not notice the quarrel last night. I wouldn't be able to get within a kilometer without being spotted. We don't need the extra attention on us now, not when we are this close." The mountain of a man spoke with disdain towards the woman, but there was a no denying the man's intellect. He was a strategist and a king, though disgraced he may be.

"Very well then, I shan't worry about that fellow. He did not appear to be the kind who needed much worrying about, a shame his boasts did not translate over to his strength." The witch spoke.

"Putting that aside, what is your intention with your long lost divinity? Our plan was to acquire it weeks later, not now. You can't use it in your current state. Even if it was once part of you, in the hands of the usurper it has grown into something else, something independent of your former godly self. Keeping that blade without any means of subjugation would only attract his attention." The man gave the witch a glare. Their plan had been hatched with their combined minds, but attracting the wrong kind of attention would make it fall apart before completion.

"That won't be an issue. I have already cast several spells of concealment and even if it has evolved beyond my immediate control, given time I can reassert my domination over it." Kushina told the deity. The Divine Ancestor had put the most powerful spells on the artifact and her daughter in order to conceal them from the eyes of the deity which had for so long kept her prisoner. She wouldn't let her guard down even if the plan had gone better than expected so far. They still had a long way to go before the [Steel] she sought dead was defeated.

The deity called Gong Gong gave the witch who didn't even reach his stomach a wry smile. "I do not doubt for a second that you could bring your authorities back under your control, but we are in the territory of a god of [Steel] and a godslayer who slew steel just last night. Even if the deity slayed by the bastard of Epimetheus did not truly deserve the title, he was still powerful in his own right and the one who has taken this land as his territory took the power of that [Steel]. We do not need the extra weight of a human slowing us down. Even if she carries the blood of the snake, she would still be a hindrance in battle. If your ascension to divinity takes longer than expected because of your affection we won't have any choice other than to get rid of her?" The massive deity told her.

Kushina felt rage boil in her veins. This fallen deity, this child murderer was telling her that she would have to dispose of her child, her snakelings?! The nerve of the monster! She would do no such thing, even if her return to full power took longer than what they had originally planned on. She had for the first time her family and she was going to keep it, no matter what the deities her comrades were.

"I do hope you understand what your statements mean, Lord Gong Gong. I do not take threats to my kin lightly. So in order to alleviate your _fear.._." She stressed the word all deities loathed and she was rewarded with a look of fury. "… I want you to know that the human in the next room is capable of using [Divine Possession] with the core of my Authorities. She will be an excellent ally if the situation requires it."

She felt a small sense of satisfaction over her jab at the deity. While she was a Divine Ancestor and no match for a god in any sense other than verbal, she knew that the deity in front of her wouldn't try to kill her. He had a common enemy in the [Steel] even though he had no direct connection to him. The deity in front of her was quite hateful of deities such as their foe, or he was simpleminded depending on how you look at it.

No matter how it seemed though, Kushina had won this small battle of wits. Gong Gong was a strategist, or at least he thought he was, and he knew the advantage of having a Hime-miko capable of Divine Possession. Not for battle against Deities of course, not even the strongest user of divine weapons could hope to match even a subordinate god in direct combat. No, if her daughter needed to aid them in their plans she would battle the humans supporting the deity of [Steel] in this land. Their individual strength might be pathetic, but combined and directed and it could prove to be a hindrance in their battle.

The red-haired ogre grimaced as he took in the news his ally provided him with. With a shrug, a surprisingly human gesture, the deity turned back to the cave. "I do not care for weaklings and even if your child can use some form of authority with your powers, it will still not hold up against our foe. Keep her close if you wish, but I won't care for her unless she becomes my follower. This country is far too set in its ways for me to put effort into subjugating it, but if they choose to follow me of their own accord then I do not mind. As long as you do not become a hindrance to our plan because of the miko then I have no quarrel with her."

He left the cave, his awkward gait not impeding his speed or agility despite the appearance. The tall man almost reached the ceiling of the cavern, but he did not lower his head even once, perhaps out of the pride the deity held for his own stature.

`As long as she did not become a hindrance´… As if he had any right to condemn her for her wishes. Her children had been the reason she had allied herself with the deities who had fallen from grace. She wouldn't allow a single one of her little snakelings to be harmed, be it by humans or deities.

It appeared she would have to alter her plans somewhat. Gong Gong had just been demoted from valuable ally to potential enemy.

**ROTE**

Stepping off the plane, he was assaulted by the Italian heat. After having spent hours on an air-conditioned jet, Godou had to use his hand as a fan to cool off. Even though he had usurped the powers of a sun deity, his body still felt heat as an unpleasant sensation.

"Kusanagi Godou?" Hearing his name, he turned his eyes down and saw the speaker. It was a middle-aged man, wearing what looked to be a very expensive suit he doubted he would be able to afford even if he worked for ten years with his current part-time salary. Just the blazer alone looked like it was worth a small fortune; he didn't even want to think about how much the entire set was worth. He felt he might lose something important as a human being if he did.

"Yes, that's me. Are you Luca Borgia?" He asked. Rosa had said the person meeting him would be the youngest son of the Borgia family, a minor noble family of mages in the Italian hierarchy. Having been a formerly successive family several centuries back, they had lost a lot of standing when the head of the family had unknowingly insulted a Campione. The fearful nature of the Campione made all the business partners of the Borgia family cut ties with the Borgias and the politicians who had until that point been glad to accept bribes suddenly grew a backbone and refused to turn a blind eye to their actions. After a few generations they had been reduced to the point of poverty and their more prominent members had died. Since those dreadful years, the family had focused on maintain what little gold and power they had and had managed to avoid falling into oblivion, but it was obvious they were not going to reclaim any political power any time soon. They were in charge of the academy Godou would be going to, a similarly minor school meant to introduce newcomers to the world of magic.

"Indeed I am. If you'll follow me, please." The man was polite, but it didn't seem like he was much for small talk. Better than Johan at least, that man had been a real piece of work.

Thinking back on how he had been convinced to come here, he couldn't help, but think he should have put up more of a fight.

_One week after the Battle of Fuji…_

Gaining a new authority was kind of like trying a new kind of soda. You knew what a soda was, you knew how to drink it and you knew that it was wet and carbonated, but you never knew what the taste would be like. Was it fruity or bubbly, cold or room temperature, brightly or dark colored? It was almost as much of a puzzle as to how a human was capable of killing a deity in the first place.

When Godou had stolen the authorities from Sòl, it would have been the equivalent of him tasting soda for the first time in his life. It was new and he had no idea on how to describe it. The taste would have been pleasant, but unlike anything he had ever tasted before.

When he had gained a second authority he was given a certain amount of perspective. It was a `Oh the soda from before tasted like that, but this soda tastes like this´- kind of feeling. From having only seen one side of the powers of gods, he could now see another side from a different god too. That was why he didn't have any trouble in learning about the new authority when he woke up the other day, unlike the first time when he had to meditate for several days in order to find out what the powers he had gained were.

Out of respect to the tragic deity (for there was no doubt about the tragedy of his legends) he had decided to call the authority [Father of Steel]. It was fitting as well due to the nature of the authority. It had the ability to forge any kind of sword which concerned the tales of Muramasa or his aliases and the deities who stole from him. It meant that he could forge any weapon he had ever forged.

A blade which slays dragons. A blade which is indestructible. A blade which is cursed. A blade which is holy. A blade which is made of flames. A club which is cloaked in lightning. A club which is forged in wind. A blade which kills a man each time it is drawn. A blade which comes from the lake. A spear which never misses. A sword whose injuries will never heal.

The potential of the authority was immense and it certainly fitted the power of the forge. There were only a few problems.

Conditions.

He couldn't just call on them and use them straight away. He had to personally forge them first. That meant he needed a forge and tools to make them and considering that designing a forge was hard to do, that part of the authority was a pain to get by.

The second condition was quite annoying. In order to forge even a single sword, he needed the skill to forge it. He couldn't just go to the forge and simply hit the metal until it became Durendal or Gram. He needed to build up his skill by forging smaller blades first and then starting on other swords. Those particular conditions lead him to one important question, one he personally thought was preposterous but one that had to be asked.

Why the hell was the authority of a God, the strength of humanity's belief, modeled after an RPG?!

Seriously, it was the exact same as most RPGs! `Oh, you don't have enough XP to build that weapon, please gain more XP first before forging the blade.´ He guessed that letting a level one human wield The Gigantic Sword of Ultimate Doom and Agony was too much to ask. Even once he had learnt how forge a magic sword he would still have to increase his skill in **forging** a magic sword.

The third condition was connected to the second. In order to use [Father of Steel] he needed to follow the evolution of blacksmithing. In other words: he was not allowed to buy modern furnace and use modern tools, that would be cheating. He needed to the most primitive of tools in order to forge his first weapons. Once he had gained a certain amount of skill, he could use more evolved versions. He couldn't use a gas-operated or coal powered furnace modern blacksmiths use; he had to build his own. He couldn't use the hammers modern blacksmith use; a normal every-day hammer would have to suffice. He couldn't use anything modern as fuel; he had to go into the forest and chop down a tree or find some sticks to burn.

If anyone had ever tried to forge a sword, they would know how difficult it is. The temperature had to be right and striking the metal had to be done the right way. Trying to get the right temperature using stick and logs was not difficult, it was impossible! Sticks burned with high heat, but short life whereas logs gave little heat with a lot longer burn time. Finding a balance between the two was harder than finding a needle in a haystack.

That meant that in order to actually use the authority properly in battle, he would have to invest countless hours into it first. This, alongside his kendo practice and magical studies, would if he was not careful, destroy his entire social life. Not that he had one to begin with as the only people he spent any time with were his family and Asuka. Although ever since he began practicing in the club, lots of girls had decided to join as well so he was never spending his breaks without anyone to talk to. He also always left with a full stomach since they weren't very good with determining the amount of food to cook so they always cooked more than they could eat and shared their lunchboxes with him.

He really should pay the girls back for the food they shared with him. Maybe give them some sort of gift, jewelry perhaps? Volund had crafted jewels in his legend, though the materials were rather sinister.

Shaking his head clear of such thoughts, he focused on the task ahead. The evolution of blacksmithing was interwoven with steel and its divine equivalent, [Steel]. The word [Steel] however is not tied to the human metal. Steel is simply the contemporary word for the element. While steel had been introduced over 4,000 years ago, gods of [Steel] existed long before that. The reason was that smiths had used bronze in swords and before that they had used stone knives and spears. As the world evolved so did the category of gods. In fact, steel and iron had been so rare in ancient Egypt that it had been worth more than gold. When a pharaoh had been buried, he could be buried with several tons of gold, but it was rare for one to have more than a single iron or steel dagger in the crypt.

This had a strong effect on how he used the authority. Thousands of years ago when smithing was first introduced, people had not divided the job of smithing and gathering supplies. A blacksmith (or whatever they were called back then) had to gather the firewood, break out the iron ore and forge the metals all alone. While he may have had people to help him, it was ultimately the smith's duty to do it.

That was the reason why, if he wanted to use his own blades against the gods he fought, Godou had been forced to sneak into a forest, chop down a tree and cut it into logs and transport it home. He had to steal the pickup his grandpa owned and used his disguise to drive. The only officer who had stopped him had been exposed to his hypnosis, but he still felt bad about breaking the law. He wasn't allowed to use his authorities to transport the wood so he had to use mundane methods to deliver the logs to his hideout. It was also the reason he had been forced to sneak into a scrapyard in order to steal large amounts of scrap metal. It had been slightly embarrassing to think that he, the King of Japan in the form of Yamato Takahashi, had to sneak out into the night in order to do it as he doubted the people who worked there would let him just take whatever scraps he needed without payment. If he had paid them for the metal then it would go against the nature of the authority as the people had not developed a system for buying ore yet in the primitive state the authority wanted him to replicate.

After that he had to make a forge. It had been quite simple actually; the notion of an anvil had not changed much over the years except the material used which had gone from stone to bronze to iron. Thanks to the lack of evolution, he could actually use a modern anvil made from steel. The forge had been trickier, but doable. The forge is essentially a hearth, a place for fire. While it had evolved over the ages, the basic definition of a forge is a place filled with embers and flame. Godou had discovered a way to balance that. He had taken a metal barrel used for storing liquids and sawed it in half. One half became the water tub used for cooling the blades and the other was stabilized and filled with firewood. While nowhere near good enough to forge a proper weapon, it was sufficient to get started. The barrel would probably not last more than a few blades before the heat would destroy the thin metal, but he would just need to make sure he had a spare before that happened.

The tools used were also modern to an extent. Instead of a hammer specialized for smithing, he used a normal hammer for everyday work. It was not evolved in the sense of smithing, but also good enough to hammer the metal.

So here he was forging his first piece of work. Someone might think `Wait a minute! He doesn't have any training in forging, how can he just forge something as soon as he starts? ´.

The answer was simple…

"Ah YouTube, what would I do without you?" Godou asked out loud. There were no shortage to videos on how to make something on the internet and most people even provided instructions for them. Godou was lucky to be born in this day and age, to think a video on the internet could show him how to use an authority.

He had been working on his first project, a bushcraft knife which seemed easy to make. It had been surprisingly hard, but simple at the same time. While [Father of Steel] did not provide instructions, it did inform him when he was doing something wrong. As soon as he struck the hammer incorrectly, a switch in Godou's head would tell him it was wrong and he would know not to do so in the future. Slowly the blade took form, hot steel gaining a definite shape. It was not a beautiful piece, especially not compared to the swords Muramasa had been using in combat. It was short, crude, discolored and ugly. The edge was so dull he doubted it would cut through butter even if heated unless he sharpened it against a whetstone. Even so, he thought it was a great accomplishment for his first work. He was happy as long as it wasn't a failure, Muramasa might come back to haunt if he did mess up his first creation. The mad blacksmith was probably too insane to die completely anyway.

While in terms of quality, comfort and range, the blade he had forged was inferior to the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi in every way, but this was superior in channeling magic. The sword he had used against Muramasa had been an excellent blade, but it had shattered after the battle due to the strain of channeling the authority of the sun. This tiny little knife however had been made using the authority of a god, there was no way it wouldn't be able to channel magic. While he thought the irony of the situation was poetic (his Totsuka-no-Tsurugi had broken after he achieved an authority to create swords, like the way the original Totsuka-no-Tsurugi had broken after Susanoo had found Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi), the blade's lack of offensive ability meant until he had managed to forge a sword capable of being used in battle, he was vulnerable.

He had no idea when the next deity would arrive, but he wanted to have another sword in his hands by that time. Maybe he should take a look at different designs of swords. Taking his phone out of his coat, he turned it on since he did not want to be disturbed while he forged. Before he could search for new swords to forge, he was stopped by the ringtone.

*Ring Ring*

He looked at the screen of his state of the art cellphone his grandpa had bought him for his journey to Sweden. Sliding a finger over the touchscreen, he saw the caller-id show the name Rosa. The fact that she had called him surprised the godslayer, especially considering she had been the one to suggest they try to keep contact to a minimum to reduce any risk of his identity from being leaked.

"This is a surprise. What could make you call me after all you said before about security?" During the time he had spent sparring and practicing magic with her he had lost the formal tone when speaking to her. It was hard to be formal when you're trying to beat each other with wooden sticks.

"Hello Your Majesty." Though when you happen to be talking to a godslayer it might be easier to be a little formal. Then you tend to be as formal as possible in order to avoid incurring the godslayer's wrath it seemed. "I hope you are settling in alright in japan. Though if the rumors are true then you have been having quite the _blast_ over there." The emphasis she put on the word `blast´ indicated she knew something…oh right, the Fuji-thing.

"Well, the deity was asking for it and I hate to disappoint. As for how I'm doing; I have a whole building to play around with and I survived an encounter with a deity so things are pretty good right now." Creating his first success after having to go through so much work left him in a good mood and as a result he had no problem showing emotions. Escaping narrow death tended to do that to you.

"Congratulations, M'lord! I had no doubt your might would prove superior against whatever god tried to attack you, though I am astonished that you would destroy an entire mountain as an act of victory, but it is not my place to question the actions of a godslaying king." The voice was steady and serious, but there was an underlying tone of humor.

"Wait, destroy a mountain?! What the hell have people been saying about me?" The boy asked the caller. He had done no such thing. What kind of idiot would destroy a mountain?

"Oh, I heard through the grapevine that a deity challenged you and set up an ambush by a volcano and that you charged in without hesitation. Once the trap was revealed to be a subordinate god and they attacked you simultaneously, you took out the subordinate with a single blow and then killed the god while making a volcano erupt. You then proceeded to cover the mountain in ice to show off your powers, but left once you got bored. Is that not right?" Rosa asked through the phone.

"While I admit I blew up a volcano and killed a god, it was not because I won! It was simply an accident… well, maybe I was aiming for the volcano in the first place, but that's not the point. Also I covering the mountain in ice was not true; I simply filled the cracks in the mountain side in order to make the volcano stabilize." He defended himself. He was not as insane as people thought he was.

"I see, for a king to let something as minor as a volcano to erupt in his presence would be an insult to his pride. What normal people would consider impossible in terms of magical resources, a King thinks is a natural course of action. Putting that aside, there is a certain matter I wish to discuss with you. Are you available any time soon?" Rosa seemed to accept whatever he said, but clearly misinterpreted what he meant. He had no choice other than to sigh in defeat, how come all the women around him kept on mistaking his actions for something a fool would do.

"Yeah, do I need to come over? I just need to take a shower real quick and I'll be there in an hour." He told the woman on the phone. Shizuka was having a sleepover with a friend and his grandpa was visiting a friend in Okinawa. He'd be able to travel to Sweden and make it back before they noticed.

[The Chariot] was a godsend (pun intended) when it came to traveling to other countries. He could be on the other side of the earth in less than ten hours if he wanted to. If he went at full speed he could make it in seven hours, but that was dangerous to the surrounding countries and airplanes he passed. Since he had sacrificed the chariot in the battle along with his steeds, he had to wait for them to regenerate until he could ride them again. The stallions could not be heard unless he activated [The Chariot], but he knew they would be excited to charge across the sky once more.

"About that… lately there has been some activity in Europe concerning sorcerers and I am unable to deal with them. They have recruited several strong mages and my personal force is too spread out and weal to deal with them. It's gotten to a point where I have had to join the efforts myself, but unfortunately I can't do much in the long run. If you are not preoccupied, is it possible for you to help me in rooting out the evil which has spread in the land?" The woman was using a very formal tone now, a proof of how dire the situation really was.

"Is it really that bad?" Godou asked her.

"Normally a sorcerer isn't that difficult to deal with. The difference this time is that these particular ones have received back-up from American organizations who have taken control of the local mafias of various nations. The mafia's ability to find lowlife scum have given the sorcerers an incredible boost in manpower and none of the magic organizations have enough staff to deal with the problems. The kings of Europe on the other hand are either lazy or don't care about the wellbeing of the lands and so I wanted to ask you if you would like to help us." The proud woman said. While she was proud of her heritage and would never lower herself to ask another person, this was a godslayer, a Campione, and no matter what her bloodline was, compared to a human who possessed the powers of gods he was a dime a dozen.

"Sure, just let me pack and I'll be right over." Was Godou's immediate response. While he was not looking forward to fighting criminals, the library in the Silverström mansion was massive and he could always find some old tome to keep him occupied.

"Wait, Your Majesty! Don't you think that maybe it would be suspicious for the king to leave while a Japanese youth of the same age and area leaves at the same time to the same location as the king? You said yourself that you wish to keep your true identity a secret and this would give the investigators reason to look more into the situation of Kusanagi Godou and where he was during the time of Christmas. You need a plan to fool the Committee if you do desire to help."

True, he did need to keep his identity a secret, though he wondered how long he could do it. Changing between Kusanagi Godou and Yamato Takahashi was taking its toll on his personal life, with trying to keep his sister off his tail and still being friendly with her. While she did have a bossy personality, she was still worried about him it seemed. He needed to make her feel better somehow, to alleviate her concerns.

"So what do you suggest then?" He was curious as to what she thought. Out of the two of them, she had been the more intelligent. When she had found out about his desire to keep his identity a secret, she had immediately erased any traces of his presence in Scandinavia. To the eyes of world he had never stepped foot in Sweden at all. It would have been impossible without her help and he did feel indebted to her for it.

"In a few weeks there will be a holiday for Japanese high schools and many will go on a vacation. Yamato Takahashi will travel to Europe in order to fight the sorcerers, but before that, Kusanagi Godou will travel to Italy to start his magical education at L'Accademia delle Scienze Mistico. Then while people are focusing on the king, Godou can travel and investigate the activity of the mafia." The woman said.

Godou was stunned, and not in a good way. Had she just said he should enter the world of magic under his own name? What part of keeping his identity a secret did she not understand? He had created Takahashi in order to avoid that. The world of magic was dangerous and he would eventually have to show his magic at some point and when he did, people would notice his abnormal reserves and put two and two together. He would lose his secret identity faster than he could ride.

"What?" He tried to voice his concerns, but he couldn't put his thoughts into words. Where would he start? So many problems had been raised with just a few sentences.

"I noticed that you spent a lot of time in the library while you stayed in Sweden, but literature can only get you so far. While your magical talent gets you further than normal people would, basics and theory behind magic is not covered in books. Only an experienced tutor can help you if you truly wish to master the mystic arts." The voice from the phone spoke with certainty, enough to make Godou believe it was actually possible for him to succeed… but only for a moment before doubt reasserted itself in his mind.

"But why do I have to use my real name? Can't I just… go in my disguise?" He asked meekly, knowing full well how ridiculous it sounded. He did not want to reveal his real identity to the magical community, at least not until he was able to make certain it was safe for his family. From what he could tell, a lot of mages went rogue after learning a little knowledge and abused their abilities for their own personal gain. If he exposed his real identity to the magical public, a connection could be made to his sister and grandpa. He wasn't overly concerned about his parents, they just barely managed to stay as relatives as it were, if they were any more absent they would be labeled as strangers. He couldn't even remember a conversation with his father that lasted more than five minutes before he was ignored in favour of his sister.

"The point of introducing yourself is to avoid people making connections to your real name. By having Yamato Takahashi appear as the powerful Campione in a country far away, the student Kusanagi Godou will be free to move around where he wishes. As long as you don't use any authorities as Kusanagi Godou, no one will be able to figure it out." Rosa said with confidence, more confidence than he had ever heard her use. While he didn't mind going to a school for mages, in fact he actually wanted to learn from a real professor, it was the unnecessary risk for his family he was afraid of. Even if he didn't reveal he was a Campione, the world of magic was treacherous from what he could tell. Mages would spy and betray each other left and right if they would benefit from it and that was simply the Swedish mages he had read about. The books had mentioned that other societies were just as vicious in other ways so he wasn't all that eager about leaving his homeland to study in a country he had never before been in.

"But I don't want to create any unnecessary risks." It was not the argument a king would use towards a lesser lord, but a last ditch attempt to avoid doing something he really didn't want. He had just gotten back from Sweden and now he had to travel to another foreign country he had never been to? He thought his spontaneous travels to faraway lands would come to an end when his grandpa grew too old for it, but now he had to continue without him? It wasn't fair!

"Nonsense, there is nothing unnecessary about this plan! I have already mailed all the required paperwork to your house and the messenger arrived an hour ago. Just sign the bottom of the document and you'll be a foreign exchange student." She was acting frighteningly similar to hos his mother usually did and it was tearing down all of his arguments as if they weren't there. She had never been so pushy when they had spoken in person, maybe his lack of visual expressions was making it easier for her to push forward.

Wait…

"There hasn't been a messenger here at all. Are you sure you sent him here?" He asked. If the messenger had gotten lost he could avoid moving to Italy.

"No, he called me and said a young girl accepted the package. Are you sure your maid hasn't given it to you?"

Young girl?

"Did the messenger say the name of the girl?" He felt cold sweat break out all over his body. No, it couldn't be…

"A young girl named Shizuka, do you know her?"

…

No…

"If I don't arrive in Italy because if sever injuries then I want you to know that I blame you." he said with anxious fear creeping into his soul.

"Wait, what do you mean, my lord? King Kusanagi? Hello-…" Whatever Rosa wanted to ask him disappeared into the nothingness as he cancelled the call.

Checking his phone for missed calls, he noticed the list of calls he had not answered. All of them were from a single person.

Kusanagi Shizuka.

Just as he had determined the identity of the caller, he felt the phone in his hands vibrate and a calm ringtone began to play. The small musical piece might have had a calming effect on him normally, but in the current situation it did nothing except fill him with dread at the horror to come.

"Hello, Shizuka-chan-…." He started.

"ONII-CHAN, WHEN WERE YOU GOING TO TELL ME YOU WERE PLANNING TO STUDY ABROAD?!" The voice filled with raging fury belonged to his sister and he knew things were going o get worse before they got better.

_February 2…_

Maybe he needed to keep his phone on during the time he spent forging, but he was still feeling rather angry at Rosa. Going through with it without his consent was something he needed to talk to her about since it was his life and all, besides he didn't think he was going to survive another one of Shizuka's infamous lectures. Even Asuka thought the yells emanating from his house had been too much, but once she had heard he was going to study in Italy for a year she had joined in without hesitation.

He was still considering the possibilities about staying in Italy. It would help his studies a lot, but he would miss an entire year of his family and friends. He also didn't want to leave Shizuka alone for an entire year without some kind of guard for her. The three idiots in his class had always thought underclassmen were easy targets to find girlfriends among and he knew Shizuka was more than capable of taking anyone of them down, but he was still her older brother and he needed to look after her. Even if he used the chariot to fly back to japan at max speed, it would still take him a long time before he arrived. Also he didn't know how Shizuka would act around him if he left for a year, if she would be cold or furious. When he had left on small trips with his grandpa, she would always act coldly towards him, acting as if he wasn't there when he got back. On longer trips she would yell at him for the smallest things, no matter how insignificant. If he disappeared for a year…

He shuddered involuntarily, the memory of the lecture coming back to haunt him.

"Signora Rosa tells me you have a talent for magic, Signor Kusanagi. Care to tell me how you discovered this branch of the obscure so late in life?" Borgia asked him while they were walking.

They had entered the airport now and the air-conditioners in the building must have been working at maximum capacity since the air inside was cool enough for him to far asleep in. it was a sharp contrast to the sweltering heat outside.

"Well, I found a grimoire in my grandpa's attic and started reading it." They had practiced his cover story until he could recite every word from the written document it had been written on, without magic. "I didn't think it was real at first, but I did believe it when a fireball flew into the wall and started burning. After that I tried finding any books on magic as I could until I met a servant from the Silverström household who thought I had a gift and introduced me to the lady of the house." It was the short version of the story, one without any details. The longer had him tracking down old tomes all over the country in hope of finding a genuine article with limited success until he managed to bump into Sophia, the maid in Rosa's household. After discovering they were both mages, Sophia would meet up with him to teach him some magic every once in a while.

"Interesting, to think you would discover your magic at such a late age and still possess such large stores of magic. Have you discovered any particular talents for magic or interests?" Luca continued to question him as they neared the limousine.

"I like using elements and enhancement magic. I'm pretty good with physical [Enhancement] and different kinds of battle magic, but I don't' have much experience in using them." He answered truthfully for the most part. His skill in using [Enhancement] was average, but his reserves made up for it and he had little experience in using magic in battle since he had only fought in a real fight once against a deity.

"I see, you don't have a talent which only you possess? Like an aptitude for a certain magic?" The youngest son of the Borgia family asked.

Godou frowned at the question. An aptitude? What did that mean? An aptitude for slaying deities? That he certainly had, he had slain two in just a few months, more than most people on this earth could say. An aptitude for a certain branch of magic? His magic gift, the one he had received from Sòl had given him the ability to use magic normal mages could not use so he should have an aptitude for pretty much any magic in general. If so, his foremost talent would be Enhancement magic, not something a mage would be proud to speak of.

"No, my strongest spell is enhancement followed by elemental spells. Mrs. Rosa sent me here because she thought I needed grounding in real magic first before I tried to specialize my craft into a certain branch." He hoped the other man bought the excuse. It essence, it was the truth; it had only been altered in scope. In terms of human spells, his strongest was the Enhancement he had used in the battle of Fuji. Even his spirit vision did not compare to his use of Enhancement.

Luca seemed to realize how inquisitive he had been and backed off as the limousine started moving. To shift the focus away from the conversation, he pointed at the small refrigerator.

"Anything to drink?" He asked, hos tone having lost its seriousness for the most part. It seemed he would focus on being hospitable from now on, a sentient Godou was glad to notice.

Accepting a soda, he was surprised at the taste. It had a lemony taste, but did not taste like any soda he had drunk before. It took him a while, but he decided he liked the drink. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad here.

At that point, Luca took up a large pile of papers from the case he was carrying and gave it to him.

"Please go through these and answer what you know." He said as he gave Godou a pen to use.

Godou accepted the papers and the pen, but he had no idea what to do. "What are these?" he asked in return. Hadn't he already signed the documents needed to transfer to the academy?

"These are placement tests, they're used to discover how advanced you are. If we don't know how much you know then we can't place you in a class suited for your level." He said while adjusting his glasses.

The pile must have been a a decimeter thick and the text wasn't exactly large either. Hwow as he supposed to finish these before they arrived?

"If you're wondering how you're supposed to finish the test before we arrive at the academy, then don't worry. I have several errands to run before we arrive so you'll have a full five hours before you need to leave the car. Though if you want to finish the entire test then I think you should hurry, five-hundred pages are a lot of ground to cover and you're time is starting to run out. Although you shouldn't have any problem with it, Asians are known to be smart, or at least I'm told." The gleam in his glasses was enough to make him look like some weak mastermind in some anime Shizuka watched.

As he started reading the test, he was astonished, by the text.

_Adam wants to use Flight magic to travel 325.3 km. How much magic energy should he expend if he crosses:_

_Eight rivers and a mountain?_

_Two temples?_

_A graveyard and five magical fortressess?_

As the questions swam in his mind, he looked back at Luca. The young man was smiling as Godou started writing down his answers.

He wanted Godou's answers? Oh, he would get them!

**ROTE**

"…As I said, the academy was built in 1883 by my great-grandfather. Before this school existed, first generation mages such as yourself would spend years hampering through the world with what little magic they could use, hoping to find a master to teach them. Institutions teaching magic have existed for centuries, millennia even, but they were rather prestigious and only reserved for the nobility of the various nations. This was the first school in Italy to offer magical education to those not of noble blood and it has been rather successful in its purpose. Though two other schools have appeared in the same country, out institution remains the first and foremost of them." Luca Borgia said as he waved at the immense structure towering in front of them.

It was a massive building, made from some white stone and it reminded him of ancient Greek temples. Large towers sprouted into the sky, each of the four corners possessing its own tower. The windows were dozens of meters in size and showed exquisite shapes, everything from roses to swans. The front entrance followed the theme and the oak doors towered over Godou like a boulder over a pebble. Even the surroundings were enormous compared to the neighboring houses. The pillars holding the archway leading to the entrance were, for a lack of better description, huge with elaborate pictures carved into the stone, depicting some kind of battle between men and monsters.

Was this really a minor school for magic?

"Someone was overcompensating when they built this." Godou muttered under his breath, not knowing what else to say about the extravagance in the architecture.

"What was that?" Luca said, having continued his explanation while Godou had been observing the design.

"Nothing, just admiring the view." Somehow he didn't think the descendant of the founder would appreciate having his ancestor's masculinity being insulted right in front of him.

"It is a wonderful sight, isn't it? It was initially built with a spartan mindset, using only the barest decorations for appearance's sake. At the time, Italy was experiencing an economic crisis and every family would neglect comfort for practicality. The centuries had however deteriorated the exterior until the stones would collapse and harm the students so Father put me in charge of the remodeling. Every carving and painting was either designed or supervised by someone in my family with the theme being roman heroes. We possess bloodties with several famous heroes in ancient times and as such, our school must reflect our lineage." Luca boasted, as if he had been the one depicted in those carvings.

So it hadn't been his ancestor who had been overcompensating, it had been his descendant all along? Interesting, but not entirely strange. The school had been created with the intent of saving money on design, but the modern era was more fixated on appearance than practicality. Wasting money on over-the-top architectural gadgets might be understandable in this day and age, not that he would condone it, he was just hoping the restorations had included repairing the important parts of the building. He didn't fancy having to dodge a falling beam simply because the workers had been too busy focusing on small decorations rather than reinforcing the foundations.

"What kinds of classes does your school have?" he asked, trying to take the man talk about something other than himself or his family for a change. Spending over five hours in a car with a man who refused to talk about anything which did not involve the Borgia family while taking a test had made him less than eager to hear more about the Italian bloodline.

"What classes don't we have? While you will be beginning with Magical Theories and Systems, we have a number of courses which will be opened up for you after that. Magical History, Alchemy, Potions, Astronomy, Divination, Battle magic, Formalcraft, all of these subjects can be studied inside of our academy. We also have more practical subjects with little connection to western magics such as Daoist arts and various martial arts. As an asian you must be eager to try some of these martial arts, yes?" The Italian man explained. The last comment aside, Godou was having trouble keeping up with the large numbers of classes he could study. Some of them sounded interesting such as martial arts, Battle Magic and Daoist arts while the rest did nothing to raise his interests. The comment about him being Asian did grate his nerves, as if all Asians were martial artists from birth. He didn't say anything though, Rosa had helped him into this school and he would ruin his chance at learning magic if he lashed out at the headmaster's son.

"I'm pretty interested in using a sword, but I haven't had the chance to learn unarmed martial arts. Perhaps we should finalize my transfer now? I don't think it would do to keep the headmaster waiting." Although the man was not nearly as insulting and rude as Johan Silverström, Luca Borgia had a way of getting on his nerves with his subtle rudeness and ignorant racism. He never showed it outright, but his remarks showed traces of hostility mixed with arrogance. It wasn't the arrogance Johan had showed in the snowy mountains, but it still carried enough to make Godou grit his teeth when the Italian man spoke. Each time the man opened his mouth he would state something about Asian or Japanese people that was obviously not true, something he had a hard time to even think anyone would believe as a joke. Whether the man was truly racist or merely dumb he didn't know, but he knew he wanted to punch the man in the face.

"Of course, my father is a busy man and he does not have all day to waste on a single transfer student. Do you have all your luggage with you?" He asked, pointing at the bags Godou was carrying.

Godou nodded, his duffle bag and suitcase containing his essentials had been with him his entire trip and he had not let them out of his sight. They contained the materials necessary for him to start working on his forge as soon as possible. While his set-up on his base had worked so far, he needed a sword he could use and a forge made from an old metal drum would not get him far. His last attempt to create a katana had ended with it breaking after a single swing with Heavens Crashdown. He would need a real forge before he could make a decent sword and the books in his luggage told him everything he needed to make a medieval forge.

"Perfect, let us go while we still have the sun in the sky. It wouldn't do for us to be late while we still haven't given Father your test results. I'm sure he will be more than happy to tell you what you need to learn." With those scathing words, he started walking with that pompous gait. It was hard not to try and imagine how his face would look after his stallions had trampled all over it.

"Come along now, we don't have all day. I thought Asians were happy to walk long distances since it was hard to breed horses in island nations. Or maybe it was because the last one to arrive would have to commit seppuku." He said as Godou used reinforcement magic to carry his bags.

Must… Not… Release… Authority!

**ROTE**

Bringing the hammer down, he felt the shock of the impact reverberate in his arm. The steel in his hands, a piece of scrap metal he had stolen from a local junkyard, flared into a shower of sparks as his blows rained down on it.

Flaws and impurities, the steel was full of them. Everything ranging from paint and oil to copper and bronze, the various elements inside the piece of metal he was forging was nothing like the steel Volund had worked with.

But it would be soon.

Each time his hammer met the hot metal, sparks would fly and the impurities would be made visible. Oil and paint would burn in the air, creating more glowing sparks. Inferior metals would be cast off, leaving nothing but pure steel, strong steel. Time and time again, his hammer would fall and the metal would scream for a second, only to stop as hammer was raised once more. Sweat ran down his face as the heat from the forge made him feel like he was facing the sun deity once more, the sweat falling down on the glowing metal and vaporizing with a hiss. The loud sound of the hammer striking the metal echoed in the clearing, but there was not a soul around to hear it except for his own. It was probably for the best, the divine energy in the air would have made it difficult for anyone other than a mage to breathe.

This was the Father of Steel. An authority made for forging a sword.

He dropped the metal in the barrel of water and steam covered his vision. Superheated steel made a lot of steam it seemed, enough to boil an entire barrel of water. No surprise there, this was divine magic he was using, not some simple fire magic. He still didn't like the fact that he had to walk all the way over to the lake just to forge his sword because of the insufficient water supply the school had. They didn't have a pool or a stream nearby and using a water hose to fill the barrel each time he had to cool the metal down would have wasted more time than the thirty minutes he had wasted getting to the lake.

A drop of boiling water splattered onto his arm and he dropped the metal with a grunt. Shaking his arm around to cool it down, he cursed as the pain registered. Ripping of a piece of fabric from his shirt, he used it to dry his arm from any boiling water. A burning sensation made him hiss as he cleaned the burn on his arm and the cursed when he saw the blue fabric turn a deep purple from the blood. Throwing the dirty rag into the forge, he watched grimly as the glowing embers incinerated the wet cloth with little difficulty.

He had gotten used to these kinds of injuries over the past weeks. A spark or a red hot chip would land on his skin and sizzle its way into the flesh. The worst injury he had received had been the steel which had landed on his cheek and burned a hole in the membrane. He had been unable to speak for hours after that, partially due to the pain and partially due to the difficulty in forming words.

Picking up the still warm piece of metal, he tried to figure out how much work he had left. The blade itself wasn't going to win any prizes, not with the ugly design it had. He had tried to make a European sabre, but his skill had made the sword unnecessary heavy and unbalanced. The edge was too large and the tip of the blade was too thick to pierce through chainmail, not that anyone was still wearing armour. The only thing this sword surpassed Totsuga-no-Tsurugi in was magic and resistance to divine arts.

His former blade had broken after a single battle, but this blade would probably be able to last a few clashes before the steel broke. It couldn't handle the strain of channeling another authority, not when it was made with such inferior skill. Still, it would be a good replacement until he could…

"Oh, so this is the source of the strange sounds? What a strange sight."

A voice was heard, like silk being brushed against skin. The voice was so delicate it was a wonder he had heard it at all, but the strength behind it was unmistakable. He turned around to face the speaker, but…

"Oh, you must be the new student, a pleasure to meet you. I am Erica Blandelli and you are?"

That was only the first of many strange meetings between Godou and the blonde knight.


End file.
